Dougal the Garbage Dump Bear is a wonderful, quintessentially Australian book. Quirky, whimsical yet down-to-earth, and incapable of taking itself seriously.Ignore the School Library Journal review by Sally R Dow. How anyone can criticise a children's book as "implausible" is beyond me. And as for "too long to use as a read-aloud" - my three-year-old daughter doesn't think so. In fact, when we read it she usually asks for it again and again.Yes, there are a few jokes for adults, but when did making a children's book enjoyable for both child and parent become a bad thing?We first came across this book at our local library. We now own a copy, and Dougal is this year's birthday present for all our godchildren.