No Sam! and the Meow of Deception

by Drew Daywalt, Mike Lowery (illustrator)

The follow-up to the instant New York Times bestseller and Indie Next pick by author Drew Daywalt (The Day the Crayons Quit) and illustrator Mike Lowery continues the hilarious adventures of Sam the pug as he protects his family from suburban evil.

Hello again, naked-monkey-thing.

It’s me, Sam—human being, chief security officer of the Peterson family, and defender of all that is good and righteous.

Let me catch you up: Meow, my beloved sidekick, can talk now (100 percent because of the language lessons I gave him), and a mad bomber is after him. Also, Justin made a new friend, Dean, who he hangs out with all the time. I’m trying to be supportive, but there is something I don’t trust about the guy.

Let’s just say I have good instincts about these things . . .

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade

176 pages, Hardcover

Published October 28, 2025

About the author

Ever since his childhood in one of Ohio’s most haunted houses, writer director Drew Daywalt has been writing escapist fantasy and building worlds of his own. With a degree in Creative Writing, and a concentration in Children’s Literature from Emerson College in Boston, Daywalt set off to Hollywood where he spent years writing for Disney and Universal on such beloved shows as Timon & Pumba, Buzz Lightyear, and Woody Woodpecker, and where his animated series The Wacky World of Tex Avery garnered an Emmy nomination.

His first trip into live action landed him studio screenwriting and feature film directing work with such Hollywood luminaries as Quentin Tarrantino, Lawrence Bender, Tony Scott, Brett Ratner and Jerry Bruckheimer.

With an eye toward picture book writing, Daywalt’s first book THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers, debuted on the New York Times Best Seller’s List in June 2013, and has since become a Number One Best Seller.

Reviews

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 5 out of 5]

“No Sam!” is what the Peterson family dog imagines his name to be, as mom Elaine, dad Gary and son Justin are always crying “No, Sam!” at one of the dog’s many mistaken attempts at helping.

Told in first person, No Sam!, a pug, describes himself as the home’s “chief security officer” in charge of protecting the Petersons, “the family of naked-monkey-things I live with.” And he has a big job: “I keep these helpless creatures safe from all the monsters that lurk about, which gives me a purpose in life.”

Not that there aren’t real dangers to the Nobel Prize-winning scientist Gary Peterson and his fellow scientist and wife Elaine. In a previous book, they were victims of spies. Ironically, No Sam! manages to foil an actual threat to his family in this sequel by zealously chasing numerous imagined ones. To tell any more would be to spoil this laugh-out-loud-funny chapter book for fans of Amelia Bedelia. (If anything this book written by Drew Daywalt of The Day the Crayons Quit fame will be appealing beyond the Amelia Bedelia demographic, appealing to tweens and adults, as well.

Even though this book is sequel, Daywalt ensured that newbies like me never felt lost.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley, HarperCollins Children’s Books and StoryTide in exchange for an honest review.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

No Sam! had my 9 and 12 year old laughing out loud, literally. We read this aloud and it was so silly and ridiculous, we all loved it! Do you like goofy characters? What about genius talking cats? Dogs that think they are human beings? Or maybe just fun illustrated books? It's a no brainer, you need to read it.

Some of our favorite parts were No Sam! and his favorite ficus tree, his mention of a poop rug, and his valiant attempts to get rid of the vampire. I know, it sounds amazing, and it was!

Thank you to netgalley for an ARC to enjoy. We are officially obsessed. Tell me this will be a movie, I would 100% watch it!

[Lisa Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely hilarious! The audiobook is even funnier than the print book, because of the performance and the noises. No Sam! is such a funny character and I love the way he misunderstood so much of what was happening. This is exactly the kind of humor we like in my house.

[The Bourbon Bookcase · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley, Harper audio Children's, and Storytide for the ALC copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was unaware that this was a sequel to 2024's "They Call Me No Sam!" by author Drew Daywal. Though, as I am always looking for fun stories for my kids, I signed up for the ARC/ALC.

We made a trip to our local library and picked up book one and spent the weekend reading these stories aloud with our third grader, who had an absolute blast!

Book 2, No Sam! and the Meow of Deception is narrated by Ron Butler who does an amazing job of keeping the kids attention with voices, noises, and all kinds of fun. The writing of these stories keeps the parents interested with little jokes that fly just over the children's heads. Reminds me of the kind of humor from Rugrats and such.

I particularly laughed at all of the issues with Doug and the use of classic techniques to vanquish their fiend.

Truly a great story and looking forward to the continued adventures.

[bookcookery]

Steeped in dramatic irony, No Sam! and the Meow of Deception is the fast-paced sequel to They Call Me No Sam! A solid early chapter book for readers who love Dav Pilkey, Nick Bruel, or John Patrick Green but are ready to tackle slightly longer stories, the book’s humor rests entirely on the running joke of Sam’s misguided confidence and spectacular misreadings of the world around him. But beneath the absurdity lies a genuine charm, Sam’s naive optimism, boundless loyalty to his loved ones, and the fact that, somehow, everything tends to work out in the end. The series carries a timeless, if occasionally dated, sensibility, some of which provides nostalgic appeal and some of which is unnecessary stereotyping like the characterization of the shady foreign antagonists Drago and Grisha.

Thanks to Storytide and NetGalley for the advance reading copy.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an electronic ARC from HarperCollins Children's Books through NetGalley
Sam is back with the whole gang to continue protecting his family. Readers will appreciate the difference between how Sam sees his role and what is really happening in the story. Daywalt offers humor balanced with action to pull readers in. As expected, everything wraps up and we get hints of more adventures to come.

[Susan Beam-Gilleland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book would want to read the first one in this series.

[Mrs.MakesReadingFun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for fans of "illustrated chapter books" like Diary of a Wimpy Kid!
Great story and fun characters- with some awesome illustrations and comic panels throughout.

[Vicky Vaughn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually 4.5! Love me some NO SAM! So funny! :) Drew Daywalt is one of my favorite authors!

[kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of laughs!