What do you think?
Rate this book
Circle Dogs: A Playful Picture Book of Shapes and Family Joy for Kids
Young readers will want to wiggle and bounce and dig through the day with the circle dogs . . . until it's time for bed! The circle dogs live in a big, square house with a big, square yard. See the dogs? See the circles? The sun comes up, the baby cries, and the circle dogs stretch and yawn. With a flip-flap of their tails the rambunctious pooches are off to spend a happy day with Mama, Papa, Big Sister, and Baby in the big square house. A joyous picture book bursting with activity, shapes, and playful sounds from acclaimed illustrator Dan Yaccarino and Kevin Henkes, creator of Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse and many other beloved and bestselling picture books. The wonderfully fresh and vivid look of the artwork paired with the rhythmic whimsical cadence of the text makes this book a perfect choice for very young audiences. "Each page is a beautifully composed arrangement of sleek shapes that float on a field of creamy paper." ( New York Times Book Review)
32 pages, Hardcover
First published September 17, 1998
1 person is currently reading
106 people want to read
About the author
Kevin Henkes
149 books1,220 followersKevin Henkes is an American writer and illustrator of children's books. As an illustrator he won the Caldecott Medal for Kitten's First Full Moon (2004). Two of his books were Newbery Medal Honor Books, Olive's Ocean in 2004 and The Year of Billy Miller in 2014. His picture book Waiting was named both a 2016 Caldecott Honor Book and a Geisel Honor Book. It was only the second time any author has won that combination of awards.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
August 27, 2017
I've enjoyed other works by Henkes and Yaccarino. And I 'get' this. But I don't particularly care for it. To me, it seems rather too artsy-fartsy pretentious, too sly, too much for the adults & less for the kids. This is my second attempt to read it in (over a few years) and I give up (the problem is not what mood that I'm in).
It might work better as a board book, which will make it easier for my inner toddler to enjoy it (because a picture-book appeals to my inner child, and she was the one who didn't like this).
It might work better as a board book, which will make it easier for my inner toddler to enjoy it (because a picture-book appeals to my inner child, and she was the one who didn't like this).
December 24, 2015
Pretty much the daily life of a dachshund
June 20, 2017
Adorable book about long dogs that sleep in a circular shape. Shows contrasting shapes, squares, circles, triangles. Great use of onomatopoeia. Good bedtime story.
December 29, 2023
They’re just like me fr
December 17, 2025
this book was written about my dog
but in all seriousness, the onomatopoeia game is strong and for whatever reason the questions posed always get a verbal response from the kiddo. good engagement.
but in all seriousness, the onomatopoeia game is strong and for whatever reason the questions posed always get a verbal response from the kiddo. good engagement.
September 5, 2019
The book Circle Dogs by Kevin Henkes is not only a beautifully color-block style illustrated book, but it's also a book about the every day life of two little dogs. Not normal dogs though, Circle Dogs!!! These two pups, one black and one reddish-orange, take the reader through their routine. They wake up and stretch, they greet their family with licks, they play, they eat, they bark, and they "sleep and sleep and sleep".
This book was a very fun read, because the colors of the book and the illustrations are so eye catching! Using very basic colors the illustrator, Dan Yaccarino, creates emphasis on the characters by contrast. The book is entertaining, because some words on some of the spreads are laid out in an atypical way. On one spread the pictures and words mimic a comic book. They are laid in respective squares and the words read from top to bottom. I think this book is quirky and I enjoyed reading it because of its liveliness.
Since there's not much of a plot or a lesson to be taught from this book I was beginning to wonder how I would be able to use this in a classroom, but then it hit me! The unique way that the words are laid out and the constant use of onomatopoeias is a great learning opportunity for kids! This book helped me realize that not all books teach from their story, but they simply teach just because the way they are! This book is great to teach kids the definition of onomatopoeias in a simple way. The barking and stretching and clanking of the circle dogs open many doors to practice those. Also this book can teach kids that not all books are written left to right on a page, and that sometimes it takes a little investigation to figure out the layout of a book and how to read it.
This book was a very fun read, because the colors of the book and the illustrations are so eye catching! Using very basic colors the illustrator, Dan Yaccarino, creates emphasis on the characters by contrast. The book is entertaining, because some words on some of the spreads are laid out in an atypical way. On one spread the pictures and words mimic a comic book. They are laid in respective squares and the words read from top to bottom. I think this book is quirky and I enjoyed reading it because of its liveliness.
Since there's not much of a plot or a lesson to be taught from this book I was beginning to wonder how I would be able to use this in a classroom, but then it hit me! The unique way that the words are laid out and the constant use of onomatopoeias is a great learning opportunity for kids! This book helped me realize that not all books teach from their story, but they simply teach just because the way they are! This book is great to teach kids the definition of onomatopoeias in a simple way. The barking and stretching and clanking of the circle dogs open many doors to practice those. Also this book can teach kids that not all books are written left to right on a page, and that sometimes it takes a little investigation to figure out the layout of a book and how to read it.
November 12, 2010
I think I like this one better than my kids do. They never chose this book for bedtime but seem to enjoy it when I do. I LOVE the illustrations, that probably doesn't matter so much to them. The text is simple and can be read by new readers and the content is good for very young children, it helps them learn shapes and daily routine through a quirky, simple story. It's fun. And I like dogs.
September 9, 2025
A very playful and absolutely endearing amble through introducing young readers and imaginative eyes to forms, contrast, and visual arrangement. Design-driven, Circle Dogs is an undoubtable attractor for those who appreciate care for — and handling of — the unspoken geometry by which we engage with the dimensions of flat pages and the figures enclosed within. Pleasant and satisfying for its variety of (a)symmetry, attention to composition, and commitment to color complementation, this silly tale about the quotidian routine of a family's dogs encourages the audience to meet the world with a whimsical gaze, particularly through the application of pattern recognition.
March 18, 2017
One day in the life of two dogs shaped like circles. Many mentions of shapes and lots of sounds to repeat. Length is preschool and up.
June 27, 2017
"Circle Dogs" is a true circle story. The story is cute, making the children giggle. It also has great vocabulary for those who are between first and second grades.
August 2, 2017
Shapes, onomatopoeia, and unique illustrations!
December 7, 2017
There is a lot going on in this book! Good for talking to younger readers about basic shapes and for introducing onomatopoeia.
May 10, 2018
Both author and illustrator let me down in this book. Story is very clunky and not an appealing read or read-aloud.
August 21, 2019
This tells the story of a day in the life of two Dachshunds and the family they live with. The art is really cool, but the story is a bit boring.
November 12, 2020
Meh. I like the sound words but I don’t care for the book overall. I could be influenced by the fact that I don’t really like dogs but this book just bored me.
January 14, 2021
I’m a fan of Henkes and this might be my first Yaccarino. Fun to imagine writing it knowing what the illustrations MIGHT look like...
April 9, 2021
Illustrations and story are odd. Normally we love everything by Kevin Henkes but even my children were not fans.
August 5, 2022
this one is good!
November 16, 2022
This book was read on repeat for quite awhile in our house.
Simple but engaging text is combined with geometric and appealing illustrations.
Simple but engaging text is combined with geometric and appealing illustrations.
March 29, 2024
Great book for littles!!!!
May 9, 2025
The high contrast gets me every time!!
February 27, 2015
CONCEPT BOOK
Henkes, Kevin. Circle Dogs. New York: Green Willow Books, 1998
Target Audience: Preschool to Grade 1
The story is fantastic – interesting and clever. This book is a keeper and a super read right before bed since the last page says, “Shhh. They’re sleeping now. And you should be too. Goodnight.” What a great way to end a picture book. The text is bold and well spaced over the pages to add to a nice read-a-loud session. The story is mixed in with sound words such as woof, stomp, whoosh, etc, which makes the story more fun and interactive. The kids can even say them with the reader.
The illustrations are a bit unappealing as the “circle dogs” look like an eel body with a fish head. The dogs could have been so much cuter and interesting! The colors are drab and boring, but perhaps the illustrator opted for these colors since very young children tend to like black, red, and white.
The illustrator; however, does a great job in capturing the essence of the book, which is learning about shapes. There are lots of circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles incorporated on every page. The pictures are also large and take up a lot of page space, which is a plus as well.
I would have scored the book 3 stars because of the illustrations, but the story line was so fantastic so four stars it is!
Henkes, Kevin. Circle Dogs. New York: Green Willow Books, 1998
Target Audience: Preschool to Grade 1
The story is fantastic – interesting and clever. This book is a keeper and a super read right before bed since the last page says, “Shhh. They’re sleeping now. And you should be too. Goodnight.” What a great way to end a picture book. The text is bold and well spaced over the pages to add to a nice read-a-loud session. The story is mixed in with sound words such as woof, stomp, whoosh, etc, which makes the story more fun and interactive. The kids can even say them with the reader.
The illustrations are a bit unappealing as the “circle dogs” look like an eel body with a fish head. The dogs could have been so much cuter and interesting! The colors are drab and boring, but perhaps the illustrator opted for these colors since very young children tend to like black, red, and white.
The illustrator; however, does a great job in capturing the essence of the book, which is learning about shapes. There are lots of circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles incorporated on every page. The pictures are also large and take up a lot of page space, which is a plus as well.
I would have scored the book 3 stars because of the illustrations, but the story line was so fantastic so four stars it is!
December 6, 2014
The introduction of this book is so cute. The word is line in a shape of circle. Besides, I’m a big fan of Kevin Henkes. I really enjoyed how he takes the text of the story and features it graphically for readers. Kevin’s language is lively, concise and not overly didactic. In addition, the story are with quality writing and a coherent structure which is screaming to be read aloud Illustrations of this book are so imperative and reinforcing to text and mood of story, the author may often add a different detail than text alone. This illustration are so special. It is like paper cut painting. Colorful and simple story. This story is about two circle dogs live in a square house with a square yard, eat circle snack, and dig circle hole. On repeated readings, circle dogs offers fresh revelations and details that may not have been caught the first time through/timeless.
December 7, 2014
A very Simple yet effective book to reinforce shapes and lives of two dogs. This is a great beginner book! the story is very repetitive and simple it allows kids to easily follow along while looking at the pictures. Speaking of the illustration i found really interesting they use very few colors yet they are very engaging. they really enforce what the text is saying if used to help teach shapes and repeated action its a great way to do it. I was surprised that this was a kevin henkes book because many of his other work often seems to have a lesson in it. I think henkes did a great job getting into a mind of kindergardeners and toddlers in this book using such simplistic story yet it's fun
February 1, 2016
This was a unique book about "circle dogs" and what they do in a day. The author used simple, easy-to-understand language to describe they daily life of these dogs. The simple text makes this a great book for young children. The illustrations were abstract and really allowed you to make your own interpretation about what was going on in the story. Along with the words, the illustrations were also very simple, but it worked for the book.
I would use this book in a very young classroom. It would be a great book to help teach shapes, sounds, and beginner words.
I would use this book in a very young classroom. It would be a great book to help teach shapes, sounds, and beginner words.
November 29, 2018
This book should at least get one and a half stars.
Kevin Henkes definitely shows that he knows the toddler mind, and most of the caricatures that are drawn in the book show this (though someone else did the actual illustrations). There are a couple of excellent points of humor in this book that will be appreciated by readers of any age, and which will absolutely be loved by the early-reader crowd.
Kevin Henkes definitely shows that he knows the toddler mind, and most of the caricatures that are drawn in the book show this (though someone else did the actual illustrations). There are a couple of excellent points of humor in this book that will be appreciated by readers of any age, and which will absolutely be loved by the early-reader crowd.
April 11, 2011
The dogs are called circle dogs because they curl up into circles to sleep. They live in a big square house. The book pretty much takes you through a day in the dogs' lives. They wake up, stretch, and go to wake up the family. They bark at the mailman, they eat, they play. I liked the illustrations, full of various shapes, but the story wasn't all that interesting.
March 13, 2016
Creative way to incorporate shapes for young readers-listeners with what most of them like dogs! These two dogs like to do many things with mama and papa and little sister and baby. Kind of a basic text book that a learning reader could read by themselves with minimal help. Illustrations were fun for my non reading special needs teen age son.
June 11, 2016
My daughter picked up Circle Dogs by Henkes off the shelf at the library. I didn't think it was going to amount to much, but I like it much more than I anticipated.
For teachers we could use it to reinforce 2-dimensional shapes. We could also use it for onamonapia. I thought it had great examples. Better than I've seen in many books.
For teachers we could use it to reinforce 2-dimensional shapes. We could also use it for onamonapia. I thought it had great examples. Better than I've seen in many books.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews