Before Malcolm and I had our three sons we used to go busking together and I would write special songs for each country; the best one was in Italian about pasta. Throughout the series, Graeme delves into the heart of Willows Hospital, witnessing cutting-edge procedures, collaborating with skilled specialists and bearing witness to remarkable recoveries. This is the charming story of Dot the dalmatian, a very special dog indeed. Instead of the normal visits to the park, Dot accompanies her lovely owner Rose to the hospital to soothe and entertain the children, babies, parents, doctors and nurses who are there. She even learns how to sign hello to Joe, a boy who is deaf.

Her owner, Rose takes her swimming each day - then they hop onto the bus to get to the hospital where Dot spends her time being a companion in the Wallaby Ward, full of children. Rose and Dot love their work and this is reflected in the wonderful rhyming lines, impelling readers to predict the last word of each pair of lines, adding some of their own as they reread the story, while the sometimes repeated lines: But above all The hospital dog is funny and lively, entertaining and absorbing as Dot careers around the hospital, making everyone smile. Inspired by the author’s visit to a children’s hospital during which she saw first-hand the powerful positive impact visits from dogs can have on young patients, Julia Donaldson’s The Hospital Dog will put a wag in the tails of readers young and old, and ease pre-hospital anxiety. It’s a soul-warming hug of a book, with classic Donaldson rhymes, and Sara Ogilvie’s child-centred illustrations adding yet more characterful energy. I have to say that I loved the Dutch names (Fiet (dog) and Wil (owner)), but now I see the English names and I just think those are WAY more fitting and WAY more lovely.

Here is a dog, a Dalmatian called Dot, Is she quite ordinary? NO, SHE'S NOT! After their breakfast and a swim in the sea, Dot and her owner Rose jump on the bus to the hospital. ce dacă este prima ta zi de internare, ce dacă ai și febră, te doare burta, ești tâfnos, supărat, trist, plictisit...toate acestea dispar când cățelușa se află în apropierea copiilor. Această minunată cățelușă este cea care le oferă îmbărbătare doctorilor, părinților iar copiilor alinare.

Julia also writes fiction, including the Princess Mirror-Belle series, illustrated by Lydia Monks, as well as poems, plays and songs – and her brilliant live shows are always in demand. I grew up in a tall Victorian London house with my parents, grandmother, aunt, uncle, younger sister Mary and cat Geoffrey (who was really a prince in disguise. Mary and I would argue about which of us would marry him).

The story is about a Dalmatian named Dot and her owner Rose, and focuses on their visits to the hospital routinely. We saw children in “Wallaby Ward”, “most of them happy but some of them bored.” We saw some children being shy, some howled, some being cross, and a teenager scowled. Four-year-old little AJ wants to know why the variety of negative emotions, and we got to talk about some of the reasons why the kids needed to stay in hospital: perhaps they were in pain and not feeling too well? Maybe they missed going outdoor? This book brought us smile and has brighten up our days, and it really doesn’t matter whether you are a dog lover or not. We have always been a big fan of Julia Donaldson’s rhyming and whimsical stories. This is another great addition that we really enjoyed reading: - heart-moving, bitter sweet, and creates a chance for interesting discussions with kids.