This hilarious tale for children ages 4-8 (and adults who aren't afraid to laugh) features surreal illustrations by Audrey Colman and an absurdly comical storyline. Walter the Farting Dog is a timeless story about acceptance, love, and the incredible power of being oneself...farts and all.

I must say that, unlike most reviewers, I did not find the story of this flatulent canine either endearing or evil. What fascinates me is that it has managed to become such a popular book as I personally found it rather bland and forgettable. The storytelling was not nearly as witty or humorous as it could have been, and the big climax was a bit far-fetched. I also didn't appreciate the message of feeding the dog anything (from cat food to junk food) to make it stop tooting. (Also, I did not like the illustrations one iota. Just not my style at all.)Walter the Farting Dog” is a great book for the entire family that will have them rolling around laughing at Walter’s predicament for a long time. I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since smaller children might try to imitate the potty humor displayed in this book. The quote echoes Scaramucci’s characterization of Franklin’s message, but Franklin did not write those words. Japikse, the editor of the compilation of essays, wrote a short piece at the end of the book that describes a dream he had about Franklin. The quote appears in the book as something that Japikse imagined Franklin to have said. I could really find little redeeming value here. It's not that I mind a good gassy book - I can laugh and giggle over the tales of toots for ages. But, to me, the story-telling here just felt forced, and there didn't seem to be anything special in the writing. Plus, the illustrations kind of wigged me out. Billy and Betty think Walter is the perfect addition for their family. Unfortunately, his stank rump is causing their father to think differently. No matter what he tries, Walter just can’t stop farting. Special food? Farts. Holding them in? Farts. Anti-fart dog biscuits? Well, when you eat the whole bag it results in farts. If Walter doesn’t stop farting, he’s going to have to find a new house : ( Franklin's reason for taking up the topic of farting? To urge the Royal Academy of Brussels, which had put out a call for scientific papers, to take up the goal of discovering "some Drug wholesome & not disagreable, to be mix’d with our common Food, or Sauces, that shall render the natural Discharges of Wind from our Bodies, not only inoffensive, but agreable as Perfumes."

Frank - a kitchen boy with a big imagination - is drafted in as an emergency butler. As the banquet descends into a food fight and processions catapult out of control, Frank finds himself in an all-out farty farce. Can he save the day? In other words, statesman, author, scientist, and inventor Benjamin Franklin wanted scientists to focus on creating a medicine that would make farts smell good. It is universally well known, that in digesting our common food, there is created or produced in the bowels of human creatures, a great quantity of wind," Franklin wrote in an essay variously known as "To the Royal Academy of Farting" or simply " Fart Proudly." "That the permitting this Air to escape and mix with the Atmosphere, is usually offensive to the Company, from the fetid Smell that accompanies it." Franklin's dream is still unrealized: we don't have a medicine that makes farts smell good, though we do have drugs (like Beano) that cut down on gas production. Research has also found that foods which contain hydrogen sulfide — like beans, onions, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, and dairy — disproportionately contribute to farts smelling bad.

Stephen Mangan Press Reviews

But Franklin did not give his essay that title or use the phrase in the essay. “ Fart Proudly” is a compilation of satirical essays from Franklin edited by Carl Japikse, though Franklin’s essay on farting is now also colloquially called “Fart Proudly.”

Wildly funny and endlessly surprising, this is delightfully imaginative, surreal storytelling with a message that small events can trigger big change, and children can be heroes! About This Edition ISBN: Because of the compilation, the quote “fart for freedom, fart for liberty – and fart proudly” is often misattributed to Franklin. Even the Franklin Institute, a museum dedicated to science education in Franklin’s honor, credited the false quote to Franklin in a tweet.

Fart Proudly" (also called " A Letter to a Royal Academy about farting", and " To the Royal Academy of Farting") is the popular name of an essay about flatulence written by Benjamin Franklin c.1781 while he was living abroad as United States Ambassador to France. [1] [2] It is an example of flatulence humor. Just when Walter has lost all hope, he gets a chance to save the day . . . WITH HIS FARTS! Yay!!!!!! And so it falls to young kitchen hand Frank to step into the breach (or should that be breeches?) as the royal butler, and it falls also to Frank to step up to save Fabian from unfortunate fart-triggered embarrassment.