Marley Goes to School

Marley Picture Books

by John Grogan, Richard Cowdrey (Illustrator)

It's the first day of school, and Cassie is all set to go. So is her dog, Marley! Although he's told to stay, Marley digs a tunnel out of the backyard and sniffs his way to school. As he roams the halls looking for Cassie, he finds trouble instead. From wolfing down hot dogs in the cafeteria to setting free a bunch of mice in science class, Marley won't stop until he locates his best friend. This lovable and rowdy dog may not be much of an academic, but he's full of school spirit! Packed with action and hilarious Marley bad-boy antics, this follow-up to the bestselling Bad Dog, Marley! and A Very Marley Christmas will leave readers howling for more. Awooo!

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, School, Childrens, Dogs, Humor, Back To School

40 pages, Hardcover

Published July 7, 2009

About the author

John Grogan has spent more than 25 years as a newspaper journalist. Previously he worked as a reporter, bureau chief, and columnist at newspaper in Michigan and Florida. He is also the former editor on chief of Rodale's Organic Gardening magazine. His work has won numerous awards, including the National Press Club's Consumer Journalism Award. His first book, Marley & Me, is a number one international bestseller that was as a major motion picture on 2008. His second book is The Longest Trip Home. John lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, Jenny, and their three children.

Reviews

[Shawn Deal · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Marley's favorite human one up and goes to school, well Marley is off to try and get to them. Problem is this is Marley and trouble seems to know exactly where Marley is at every moment, as he bounds his way through all parts of the school.

[Maria Carmo · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the Author of Marley, this story for children is touching and has the most beautiful illustrations!

It also portrays the photo of the author and the Marley that inspired the stories.

Maria Carmo,

Lisbon, 4 September 2024

[Bailey Kincaid · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story about a dog named Marley and his best friend Cassie. It's Cassie's first day of school she is very excited about it. Her dog Marley is also excited and is convinced he will get to go with her to school. In fact, he digs his way out of their backyard and finds his way to the school. He trolls through all of the different classes and causes chaos at the school until the end of the day. The principal and all of her teachers chase Marley all the way back to his house where he runs into the arms of Cassie. He is dubbed the "teacher's pet."

I would say this book is intended for 3rd grade.

This book is very relate-able to children (even though some of the trouble Marley gets in to is just meant to be humorous). But it is all about the first day of school, and about the love someone has for their pet.

This book would be a fun "back to school" book. It could be used to introduce the school year because it briefly goes through a lot of different school subjects; subjects that the kids will be learning that year. I could also tie into a "write about your summer" activity, or maybe about their pets. Kids would love it.

[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. I know if I was Grogan I'd ride until the wheels fell off too but I'm thinking they're starting to wobble. This was cute but that's about it. And it was a little bit irky too. The little brother with the silly little babble talk? Thank God there was only about two sentences from him or I'd have slammed this shut before finishing. Who wants to read that aloud? Or not aloud? Or any old way? Yuck. :Waddy go to school too!" Eeew. Needless to say I skipped those sentences.
I love Marley. I haven't seen the movie. I have read the book. I've loved the book. I felt like I knew Marley. I have an intence love for Labs. I have a black Lab here and a yellow Lab in heaven. I have a neighbor with two black Labs. Another neighbor with a yellow Lab here and two in heaven. They're all over in my life and I love the breed to no end.
But there's a time to let go. The illustrations are the best part of this book.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I Can Tell You:
If you find the names Marley and John Grogan familiar, it is not surprise. This is the same John who wrote the adult book Marley and Me.

My kids love how big the book is (10 x 10). It can lie on all our laps and the pictures take up both pages.

Marley is sweet and funny. He just misses his "Cassie" while she is in school. Sometime I know a lot about.

My kids loved the pictures, especially this one! Marley and Cassie sleeping together with smiles. Too cute.

The biggest drawback to this book? Kids without a pet will ask for one everyday after hearing the book.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun book about a dog who decides to follow one of his owners to school one day. Students will be able to relate to this story if they have ever had a pet or have seen a dog visit their school before. This would be a great book to read if a dog was coming to visit your school or classroom. In my first grade classroom last semester we had the opportunity to have a few dogs visit the class.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a silly book starring John Grogan's lovable Marley, the incorrigible dog who gets into everything. While I really enjoyed his novel, these books for children are good, but not great. The colorful illustrations are cute and the humorous ways Marley gets into trouble definitely elicited a laugh from our girls. They especially liked his disguise while sitting in Mrs. Weatherbee's class.

[Kayla Boerner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this excitement behind the story. As a kid, I always wondered what it would be like if one of my pets came to school. The dog does many mischievous things like running through the school, eating hot dogs in the lunch room, letting the school rats out, and more. Its a fun, light-hearted story. I enjoyed reading it.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is probably just me, but I don’t like Marley. I don’t like his adult book, his kids books, or his movie. It makes me think of adults to lazy to train their dog. Marley runs to school to follow his girl, and he gets into all sorts of trouble. This book paints the adults as bad and mean. I just don't care for it.

[Nicola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miss 6 is enjoying the Marley books as super short audiobooks.

Miss 6 and I like to explore different books and authors at the library, sometimes around particular topics or themes. We try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors.

[Tessa Duncan · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Cassie has her first day of school, her dog Marley decides to come with her. Marley always seems to find trouble though and going to school is no exception. The story follows Marley and his antics through the school day.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's the first day of school, and Marley digs out from the backyard to join Cassie in her classroom. Marley makes it to school, but never to Cassie's classroom, he's too busy causing a ruckus, and finding himself in and out trouble.

[Nichole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this. The story has been told over and over, and I didn't feel like this version added anything. I also did not like the illustration style at all. Reminds me of the really old Golden Books where the kids all looked too adult and creepy.

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, action-packed read aloud.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not my favorite out of the series thus far, mostly due to the unbelievability of the situation, but it was okay.

[Jayda Safford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so funny! I like dogs. Marley looks like Gramma's dog Rudy.

[Little Champs]

2842

[M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a good read.

[Sherry Scheline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Marley. This was a very cute short read. (Less than 5 minutes). Super cute.

[Tears for Breakfast · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute and had the kids laughing out loud. Full story

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was Cassie’s first day back to school and her dog, Marley, was all set to go with her. Tied in the backyard he found a way to get out and made his way to school to find Cassie. There he got into all kinds of trouble before being caught. This is a funny story with fabulous illustrations.

[Cayia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marley Goes to School is based on a true story and movie about Marley the dog. Marley is energetic and mischievous, but has a strong bond with her owners, especially Cassie. As Marley watches Cassie get ready for school, he realizes that he wants to go with Cassie. Marley gets his best bones ready for school, but sadly his owners will not let him go with Cassie. Marley finds an escape, and is off to go see Cassie at school. This book takes the reader through the wild and exciting adventures that Marley gets himself into while trying to find Cassie. A theme found in this story is persistence and loyalty. Marley is determined to find his owner Cassie and go to school with her. Throughout the novel we see that Marley is searching all through the school (leaving a mess everywhere he goes) and not letting any obstacles stop him. Even when Marley is stopped by the principal, he finds a way to outsmart her and get to his Cassie. This idea of persistence is presented in a humorous and exciting way to which students can relate. I have always been a fan of the Marley books, and of course the movie, Marley and Me. I think that each book has a theme that can be well related to children, and presents it in an entertaining manner. One of my favorite things about the series is the illustrations. Marley Goes to School is an excellent example of the beautiful illustrations that are always found in books by John Grogan. Each illustration contains large amounts of detail, and precise colors. The infamous Marley is always drawn in careful detail and looks like a real life dog. This is one of my favorite elements amount this book. Another thing that I enjoy about Marley Goes to School is the humor. Each page provides the reader with a new element to giggle about, and always leaves a smile on their face.

[The Blurb Radio Show · Rating 2 out of 5]

Caveat: this review is written by a grown up "cat" (not dog) person.

In my experience a young child will rarely say no to the chance to sit down with an adult and read a picture book with them. I read this with my three year old daughter, and while she enjoyed the experience, I don't think it will feature on her "high rotation" bookshelf.

I read John Grogan's "Marley and me" last year and it was okay, despite the constant feeling of dread and disbelief as page after page revealed Marley's amazing capacity for destruction and escape, and his owners astounding endurance when it came to dealing with his regular debacles. If I loved dogs I'm sure the book would have appealed much more to me.

These children's books (Marley goes to school is the third in a series) extend Grogan's dog loving audience to include the younger reader. He's not a great children's author, lacking the qualities of imagination, lyricism and storytelling that make for a great children's story, but Marley's misadventures still make for a fun read.

If you weren't familiar with Marley from Grogan's earlier books, you might find some of the family references - like baby Louie's name for Marley - a little confusing.

Illustrator Richard Cowdrey does great faces but overall his pictures are fairly simple - not a lot extra is added to the story through them.

Dog loving families will enjoy "Marley goes to school" and it may also be a timely read for children starting or returning to school, especially if they are likely to miss their dog!

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

John Grogan, author of the wildly popular adult memoir "Marley and Me," writes a picture book about the troublesome dog following his girl to school. It's a cute but highly predictable story with a few problems. For example, what grade school has a science room with mice in a cage?

Something bothers me about the art in this book, as well. It strongly reminds me of the artwork from "Dick and Jane." Static and industry standard illustrations lack movement and true multicultural representation. There is an effort to include non-Caucasian people but that's all it is, an effort.

[Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe this children's book is related to the non-fiction book and subquent movie "Marley and Me" that I have neither read nor seen. I'm not particularly inclined to read the version of Marley's story meant for adults, and will only watch it on screen if it's cable on when I have absolutely nothing better to do and feel like looking at Jennifer Aniston for a couple hours. But I did find John Grogan's version of Marley's story meant for children to be rather adorable, as did my daughter.

[Margaret Chind · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome. I am quite certain it will be my favorite back-to-school read this year. Funny and full of smart humorous and pure fun. I love it. So silly, but in all the right ways. I love being able to show my almost three year old the picture of massacred school supplies and asking what is what. This is a keeper and a recommended read for sure!

Thanks to HC.
Typed on Kindle Fire.

scheduled: http://creativemadnessmama.com/blog/2...

[Carla Glover · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's the first day of school, and Cassie is all set to go. So is her dog, Marley!

Although he's told to stay, Marley digs a tunnel out of the backyard and sniffs his way to school. As he roams the halls looking for Cassie, he finds trouble instead. From wolfing down hot dogs in the cafeteria to setting free a bunch of mice in science class, Marley won't stop until he locates his best friend. This lovable and rowdy dog may not be much of an academic, but he's full of school spirit!

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would probably give this 2.5 stars but it is cute and in the world of young kids a bit suspenseful even if the ending is altogether anticlimactic. The story of a girl and her canine bestie is one that my dog loving daughter can not resist and that's how it ended up on her library list. It did have a few entertaining surprises and heartwarming moments- but not enough for it to be on our purchase list.

[Kelsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a little girl named Cassie and her dog Marley. It’s Cassie’s first day of school and Marley thinks it’s his turn to go to school as well. Marley digs a tunnel to get out of the backyard and soon finds himself in a little bit of trouble while roaming the school looking for Cassie. This is a good book to read in the classroom for the first day of school.

[Linda Costello · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has a picture of the sadest dog face ever!!! Marley can not stand to be away from his owner on her first day of school... so he digs under the fence and finds her. As he looks we get a great run down of all of the components of school. He runs through gym class, the library, science...etc.