Now Hiring: White House Dog

Review By CAROLYN M. MULLIN

Loosely based on Malia and Sasha Obama’s quest for a canine companion, Now Hiring boasts a simple storyline where the girls take the dog search into their own hands. They fashion a homemade “Now Hiring” sign for the front lawn and receive half a dozen candidates on a particularly busy day for “the most important house in the land.” The girls’ parents assume the ding dongs of the doorbell are the high-collared invitees for the evening’s party. Names dropped include the Dalai Lama, the Queen of England, the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, and the Emir of Qatar.

The dogs all make their spiel – in rhyme – as to why they should be selected for the vacancy, and in the end only Lee, a hypoallergenic  pooch, makes the cut as “top dog.” The girls ask their parents about the fate of the other dogs. Let’s just say that the President now has a new canine cabinet.

Unlike the actual “adoption” process the Obamas went through, this tale doesn’t outright promote the fact that “Lee” is a purebred Portuguese Water Dog (although the breeds of the new cabinet members are mentioned). Lee, in fact, states that he spent some time in the pound. In short, this is a sweet, dog-friendly look at the White House from a kid’s perspective.

Ages 4-8.