Clifford runs away from home to visit his father, who teaches him some things he thinks all dogs should know. Mild and nonsensical mischief ensues. Somehow Emily Elizabeth is able to narrate the whole story even though she wasn't there, an offshoot of the same latent magical abilities that allowed her to grow Clifford to giant size with her love I guess. ( )

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Everybody loves Clifford the Big Red Dog, and in this edition of the popular Scholastic series, Clifford goes to visit his father in the country. This is a fairly typical Clifford book, with an easily understood story and pictures, but two things make this book exceptional. The first is that it shows that Clifford and his father live apart, but that Clifford misses his dad very much and wants to be with him. The second is that it shows the differences between father and son, since Clifford’s dad is an ordinary dog of regular size who doesn’t look like him at all. There are underlying lessons here for children of divorced/separated dads or adopted dads, not to mention a starting point for a discussion with any child of growing up and leaving home. That’s quite an accomplishment for such a small book! Reviewed by Book Dads ( )

When Clifford visits his Dad in the country, they spend a fun day fetching, digging, and playing together. Paperback copy.