Books are my thing. In my high school yearbook I was the one to be found reading. (Okay, it might have been because nobody on the yearbook team really knew me, but they also were not wrong). And this would make most think that I have never met a book I have not wanted to read. Trust me, I’ve met plenty (I’m looking at you self-published Zombie Christmas trees….Though I did try three pages…). Some days these “don’t wants” never get read, some are started and never finished, but some are finished. When I do finish, the obvious choices pop up: I was right and it was not worth my time. And, well dang, glad I finally got to read that. The below two books were: Dang, I’m glad I got to read them. Are they my favorites? No, but I enjoyed them and happily review them so you can see if they are something you want to try too.
At first, Dalmartian: A Mars Rover’s Story did not work for me. I think it was the mostly neon-off-green color of the illustrations. But a second read to Lucy Ruth Cummins picture book, gave me a better appreciation for it. The story of friendship and “other” is not new, but the way things roll out, works on a clever and humorous level. You can take it “as is,” (a visitor from far away and the adventures they have) or as an allegory for friendship and home, and by being different and learning to adapt to each other. Overall, things are fun and cute. Your fan of dogs will enjoy it, as well as the people who like minimalist touches to their illustrations. 
Gaga Mistake Day by Emma Straub, Susan Straub and Jessica Love was a book I kept circling around. Mostly because I wasn’t a huge fan of the cover. Of course I should have known not to judge a book by its cover. But sometimes you can (I knew the Spiderpig book I read was going to be hammy). Due to the title and the image (a cloudy backdrop around a grandchild and grandmother) I assumed it was going to be about memory loss, dementia or something similar. It is nothing like that. It is bubbly, happy and silly. Gaga’s mistakes are deliberate (or we assume, though the child narrator might take things a little more at face value). Gaga brings her slippers, but puts them on her ears. A lollipop and a handful of carrots can be lunch. And dressing up is always more fun when Gaga is around. This bond between the different generations is sweet and clever. The illustrations are soft, busy, not overwhelming. Things are classically and modernly portrayed. I like how Gaga is a mix of “old timey grandmother looking” and a “young hip acting grandmother.” I expect when singer Lady Gaga herself is an older woman, this is how she and her grandchildren will act.