Mooch the cat desperately wants to find a gift for his friend Earl the dog, but Earl already has everything. What do you give a guy who has everything? Mooch wonders. The answer, of course, is nothing! This simple story features characters from Patrick McDonnells popular comic strip, Mutts, and has the same depth, charm, and heart that he gives to his daily readers. With delightfully spare illustrations and text, this book has all the makings of a longtime classic, perfect for gift-giving all year round. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

The stars of the Mutts comic strip, Mooch the cat and his canine friend, Earl, break out of the Sunday funnies into the picture book world. McDonnell applies his spare style, sketching his cheeky characters with only a few deliberate lines. Each has a distinctive feature-Mooch's red ellipse-shaped nose, Earl's Princess Leia ears-that makes them instantly endearing. With plain backgrounds, a limited palette and a small square trim size, the book looks like a blown-up cartoon strip (even the pages have a newspaper-like grittiness). But the story has more depth than the minimalist visuals would suggest. Here, Mooch searches for the perfect gift for Earl. "What do you get someone who has everything?" he wonders. (Earl is the proud owner of a bowl, bed and chewy toy.) Mooch mulls it over (red and black dots and bubbles indicate his deep thinking) and comes up with "Nothing! He would give Earl the gift of nothing." But where to find nothing? Mooch tries shopping (because "Millie came home from the store and said, `There was nothing to buy!' "). But alas, "nothing was not for sale." How he solves the problem is pure delight, reminding young readers that the greatest gift is friendship, not things. Both Mutts fans and newcomers will appreciate McDonnell's clever wordplay and lovable characters, who prove that nothing can be everything. All ages. (Oct.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information