Unless they're service dogs or competitors, pooches are not allowed at the Minnesota State Fair, but that doesn't stop the five protagonists of "A Minnesota State Fairy Tail."
They're Cooper, Egor, Minnie, Nevsky and Terri, therapy dogs who usually hang out in a library but are left behind when their library friends go to the Great Minnesota Get-Together. So they decide to crash the party.
The picture book, by Twin Cities writer Diane Prange (who has a Siberian husky named Nevsky) with illustrations by Faryn Hughes, would be a great way to introduce little ones to fair highlights, including the parade, Ferris wheel, giant slide, butter heads and delicious things to eat (actually, the dogs think the butter heads are delicious things to eat).
Hughes' Starburst-colored illustrations are packed with details for pre-readers to ask questions about and, although it's unclear how the dogs get home (or to the fair, for that matter), "Fairy Tale" ends with a friendly reminder that, after you've had your fill of corn dogs, books are awesome.
A Minnesota State Fairy Tale
By: Diane Prange and Faryn Hughes.
Publisher: Book Baby, 29 pages, $19.95.
