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Synopsis
In the town of Grimsville, where the forecast is always bleak, folks count on Carl to deliver the bad news. But one day Carl gets a whiff of something entirely new. Is is...? Could it be...? Fresh air and sunshine?! What's a foul-weather dog to do when the climate turns from bad to better? Why, he'll have to follow his nose.
Children's Literature
All dogs have sensitive noses, but Carl's is particularly tuned to bad weather. And in Grimsville, where the storms come down regularly from Old Man Mountain and the weather is always awful, the folks tune in to Carl's daily weather forecast for details. When one day Old Man Mountain chooses to change to sunshine, Carl just cannot predict, and it is "dark days indeed" for him. He just naps and naps. But the town alarm sounds. Tiny Norman has wandered away and is lost in the forest. Awakened, Carl smells Norman's shoes and is drawn toward his scent. Despite the smells of danger deep in the forest, Carl follows the trail to find the frightened Norman. Acclaimed by the town, Carl is happy to have been of service again. When there is an occasional storm, the nose still serves him well. We first find Carl on the title page, running after a wispy blue odor. On the next page he is on TV forecasting the weather. After that he has his double-page close-up. Next we are introduced to the assorted anthropomorphic citizens watching his weather show in the local diner. Backgrounds are impressionistic. Loosely painted watercolor and gouache create particularly dramatic scenes when Carl is on his quest for Norman. But it is all in lighthearted fun.