Doctor De Soto

By William Steig and Stanley Tucci

This ebook includes audio narration.
"Doctor De Soto, the dentist, did very good work." With the aid of his able assistant, Mrs. De Soto, he copes with the toothaches of animals large and small. His expertise is so great that his fortunate patients never feel any pain.

Since he's a mouse, Doctor De Soto refuses to treat "dangerous" animals--that is, animals who have a taste for mice. But one day a fox shows up and begs for relief from the tooth that's killing him. How can the kindhearted De Sotos turn him away? But how can they make sure that the fox doesn't give in to his baser instincts once his tooth is fixed? Those clever De Sotos will find a way.

William Steig's Doctor De Soto is a 1982 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, a 1983 Boston Globe - Horn Book Awards Honor Book for Picture Books, and a 1983 Newbery Honor Book.

NARRATED by STANLEY TUCCI.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: Jul 30, 2013
• ISBN: 9781466833173

William Steig

William Steig (1907-2003) was a cartoonist, illustrator and author of award-winning books for children, including Shrek!, on which the DreamWorks movies are based. Steig was born in New York City. Every member of his family was involved in the arts, and so it was no surprise when he decided to become an artist. He attended City College and the National Academy of Design. In 1930, Steig’s work began appearing in The New Yorker, where his drawings have been a popular fixture ever since. He published his first children's book, Roland the Minstrel Pig, in 1968. In 1970, Steig received the Caldecott Medal for Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. His books for children also include Dominic; The Real Thief; The Amazing Bone, a Caldecott Honor Book; Amos & Boris, a National Book Award finalist; and Abel's Island and Doctor De Soto, both Newbery Honor Books. Steig's books have also received the Christopher Award, the Irma Simonton Black Award, the William Allen White Children's Book Award, and the American Book Award. His European awards include the Premio di Letteratura per l'infanzia (Italy), the Silver Pencil Award (the Netherlands), and the Prix de la Fondation de France. On the basis of his entire body of work, Steig was selected as the 1982 U.S. candidate for the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for Illustration and subsequently as the 1988 U.S. candidate for Writing. Steig also published thirteen collections of drawings for adults, beginning with About People in 1939, and including The Lonely Ones, Male/Female, The Agony in the Kindergarten, and Our Miserable Life. He died in Boston at the age of 95.

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Reviews for Doctor De Soto

[Liam · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It ain't complicated and it's nice to read.
10/10 would recommend with a cup of tea, a comforter, and a stormy afternoon

[Oreto Doménech Masià · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was so funny! And I loved the solution of doctor De Soto: gluing together the fox’s teeth!???

[Akiva Herzfeld · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great great great great ebook by Steiger a favorite of

[Amy E. Moore · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My 5 year old loved it! Great read! Awesome! Terrific

[cheryl_in_cc_nv · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A hoot. A bit simple/simplistic, but still some of Steig's vocabulary, and some of his subtle humor and insights. For example, the fox wonders if it would be "shabby" to eat the mice. And the wife is willing to give the fox the benefit of the doubt... Steig always does think of women as the more tender sex.

[books9n9pickles · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Always a fun one! Dentist De Soto and his wife help out a fox with a toothache...but also protect themselves and "outfox the fox."

[kbernard-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is about a fox who thinks he can outsmart the neighborhood dentist. He thinks he can pretend to have a toothache, he can eat the dentist and his wife easily. To his surprise, the dentist is on to his tricks. In the end, the fox leaves with a mouth glued shut and the dentist and wife are pleased with the results.

[dukefan86 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Clever story here! I like how Dr. DeSoto and his mouse wife outfox the fox--AFTER they help him! Cute!

[brandonachey · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This story was clever and interesting but lacked any sense of theme or positive lesson that child readers could take from it. I enjoyed the character of Doctor De Soto, who is not only intelligent but also willing to put his life on the line to help others in need. I think he sets a good example for child readers to follow. However, the overarching narrative of this story demonstrates that by helping others you may be hurt in the process and should always watch your back. This message, although it reflects some peoples experiences, is not necessarily the best message to give to children. So, as a source of entertaining literature I give two thumbs up, but its message of being overly cautious when helping others I am unsure of.

[kidlit9 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Doctor Bernard De Soto, assisted by his wife Deborah, treat animals with toothaches. Since they are mice, they don't accept cats and other mice eaters as patients, until a fox in pain appears at their office.

[aflanig1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A cute book about how a fox is outsmarted by a mice.

[stephanie.warmoth · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A classic.

[michelleknudsen · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Charming story about a mouse dentist and his wife/assistant who agree to help a fox and then have to outwit him in order to avoid being eaten. It’s satisfying read but I’m kind of surprised about the Newbery Honor—it doesn’t seem quite that amazing of a story to me.

[themightyquinn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Doctor De Soto is a mouse dentist who treats all size of herbivore, but one day a fox shows up with such a terrible tooth ache the Doc takes pity on him, but then must cleverly avoid becoming dinner when the fox's tooth is fixed. This may be the best Steig book and emphasizes using your head to get out of trouble. Great illustrations filled, but not cluttered, with fun details. Highly recommended for all readers and all collections for children.

[ericarhenry · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I thought this book was incredibly smart and funny. It's about Dr. Desoto, a mouse dentist, and his wife, his assistant. They treat a variety of animals and he's a well known dentist, however, they refuse to treat dangerous animals. One day, a fox comes in with a terrible toothache and they debate about whether or not to treat him. They decide to let him in and they extract his tooth but see that he is tempted to eat them. He needs to come back the next day to get his new tooth and they formulate a plan. After the fox has his work done, they offer him a new treatment that will prevent toothaches forever. He agrees and they paint his teeth with glue so he can't open his mouth for a day or two. They outfox the fox. It's a really cute book and the illustrations are great. I love how William Steig uses animals as characters and he is abl eto give them so much personality.

[tshrum06 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a good example of fantasy. It personifies animals. It gives them real human characteristics which makes them believable, but also gives them characteristics that are similar to their animal-likenesses, like the fox being predatory, which adds to the believability.
Age Appropriateness: Primary
Media: Watercolor and Ink

[candicebairn · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Cute illustrations, kids would like it.