Little Eva #23

Little Eva returns to her clubhouse to find it transformed—curtains gone, flowers cleaned, and bones scattered—only to discover her friends have turned a stray poodle into a watchdog to keep her out. As the boys boast about their clever ruse, Eva’s sudden return sends them scrambling, fearing she’ll uncover their prank, while the dog seems more interested in snacks than guarding.

Little Eva and her mother welcome a surprise pet dog, only to laugh when they realize it looks exactly like the boy who brought it. The story plays on the joke that people pick pets that resemble themselves, with Little Eva’s mother pointing out the uncanny likeness.

Little Eva and Nipper try to test their new furniture polish on various people’s belongings, only to be turned down by everyone—including Mr. Everett, who lacks wooden furniture. After sneaking into a moving van carrying Mrs. Smith’s belongings, they accidentally glue themselves to a broken chair with their sticky formula, leading to a sticky predicament.

Little Eva, wide awake after a late-night cake binge, imagines herself a queen in a whimsical dream world where her dog Spots is a royal steed and her room transforms into a fantastical playground. As she explores this surreal realm—complete with a chocolate soda river and a mischievous wizard who looks like Nipper—she narrowly avoids a forbidden slide before tumbling back to her bedroom. Still enchanted, she wakes up eager to return to her dream, determined to retrieve the dollhouse she left behind.

Little Eva tries to keep her yard tidy after her dog Scraps repeatedly digs up bones, determined to teach him that "a garden isn't a bone yard." As she enlists Scraps in a cleanup effort, she insists on orderliness—only to find her hard work undone when he buries something else.

Little Eva finds a four-leaf clover and imagines all the good luck it might bring, from winning a million dollars to getting endless ice cream sodas. After dropping it, she returns home disappointed, wondering if the luck was just a myth.