He Was There From the Day we Moved In

The naming of dogs is a difficult matter, as Ogden and his big brother discover in this most charming of collaborations between Rhoda Levine and Edward Gorey. You see, the sheepdog was sitting patiently in the back yard when the family moved in. No one mentioned that there would be a sheepdog in the yard, but there he was. He seemed to be waiting for something, and the family, especially Ogden, is determined to find out what it is. Does the dog want dinner? a lollipop? a stray cat? conversation? No, what the dog wants is-a name! But you can't just choose any name for a grown-up dog. No, it has to be the right name. And with a little patience, and a lot of persistence, the brothers might just figure out just what that name is.

RHODA LEVINE is the author of seven children's books (two of which were illustrated by Edward Gorey) and is an accomplished director and choreographer. In addition to working for major opera houses in the United States and Europe, she has choreographed shows on and off Broadway, and in London's West End.
EDWARD GOREY (1925-2000) was born in Chicago. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago, spent three years in the army testing poison gas, and attended Harvard College, where he majored in French literature and roomed with the poet Frank O'Hara. In 1953 Gorey published The Unstrung Harp, the first of his many extraordinary illustrated books, which include The Curious Sofa, The Haunted Tea Cosy, and The Epileptic Bicycle.