Today I welcome Jeanne Betancourt to Best Dog Books, a blog that features interviews with authors who’ve written a canine story for kids or young adults.

AOB: What is the title of your book? Ten True Animal Rescues, 1998, Scholastic, Inc. Pub date and publisher? Genre? Non-fiction Targeted age group? 6-10 Illustrator? No.

AOB: Who is your key dog character(s) and what kind of dog is he/she?

Several of the stories feature dogs as a hero.  The cover of the book shows a Newfoundland puppy named Villa who saved a young neighbor who was deeply buried in a snow bank and could not get out. Feel free to list as many different breeds or mixes as necessary. Tell us a little more about him/her.

AOB: In 70 words or less, provide a succinct plot description of your story.

The book has ten true stories about animals who saved the lives of their owners or complete strangers.  There is a dog who saves a family from a burning house, a cat who saves a baby, and much more.  These animals are more than just cute and lovable – they save lives.

AOB: What inspired you to write this story?

I read a couple of news reports about animals rescuing people and thought it would be inspiring for kids to read about them, too.

AOB: What was the biggest challenge you had writing your story? How did you overcome it? 

My biggest challenge was to stick to the true story and not exaggerate or make things up – like dialogue. I re-wrote the stories until I got it right.

AOB: What other YA/MG books have you written? Do any of them feature a key dog character? If so, which ones?

What are these stories about?

I wrote 44 books in my Pony Pal series. One of the three Pony Pals, Pam, has a sheepdog named Woolie. Woolie is in many of the stories and is a main character in Pony Pal #27: “The Pony And The Missing Dog.”

AOB: What kind of story can we expect next from you? Is it about a dog? If so, what is it about?

I am not writing a story about a dog right now.  But my partner and I are talking about getting a dog.

AOB: Can you remember the first book that made an impact on you? And why?

One of my favorite books as a child was, “All Dogs Go To Heaven.” I loved that book. The dogs in heaven each tells the story of their life on earth and how they died.  I read it over and over and begged my parents for a dog.  I had to wait until I was an adult to finally have a dog – Willy, a Wheaton Terrier.  I had him for sixteen years before he died.

AOB: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Write, write, write.  Edit.  Read what you write out loud. Then edit some more.  Keep a journal.

AOB: Where can readers go to find out more information about you and/or your books?

My website

Facebook

Thank you Jeanne Betancourt for joining us at Best Dog Books!

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.

Today I welcome Laurie Myers to Best Dog Books, a blog that features interviews with authors who’ve written a canine story for kids or young adults.

AOB: What is the title of your book? Pub date and publisher? Genre? Targeted age group? Illustrator?

Escape by Night: A Civil War Adventure

June 2011, Henry Holt

Children’s Chapter Book

Ages 7-10

Illustrator: Amy June Bates

AOB: Who is your key dog character(s) and what kind of dog is he/she? Feel free to list as many different breeds or mixes as necessary. Tell us a little more about him/her.

Samson – a Whippet

I love Samson because he is a lot like the dog I have now – also named Samson. He is loyal, loving, and smart.

AOB: In 70 words or less, provide a succinct plot description of your story.

* Ten-year-old Tommy and his sister Annie are intrigued by the new soldiers arriving in their Georgia town. Since the Civil War started, wounded men waiting to be treated at the local church-turned-hospital have been coming in by droves. When Tommy sees a soldier drop his notebook, he sends his dog, Samson, to fetch it. Tommy soon meets the soldier and is faced with the hardest decision he’s ever had to make: whether or not he should help a Yankee escape to freedom.

Other links to reviews or blurbs you wish to share:

* “The succinct and simply written narrative will appeal to reluctant and younger-grade readers while the full-page black-and-white pen-and-ink sketches provide the visual time and epoch setting of the story.” –School Library Journal

“A genuine young hero learns the meaning of friendship, loyalty and freedom in this suspenseful Civil War vignette.” –Kirkus Reviews

“Sharp historical fiction, adeptly streamlined for reluctant readers.” –Publishers Weekly

“This quick and exciting chapter book isn’t shy about advancing a moral message but does so with a light touch, allowing Tommy to arrive naturally at his convictions.” —Booklist

AOB: What inspired you to write this story?

*It was a visit to Woodrow Wilson’s boyhood home. I was standing in the second floor corner room gazing out the window at the First Presbyterian Church across the street, and I began to imagine what it would have looked like during the Civil War. What would the young Woodrow Wilson have seen? The church had been turned into a hospital and Yankee prisoners were being kept in the fenced churchyard. My imagination kept growing and the next thing I knew I was writing the book.

AOB: What was the biggest challenge you had writing your story? How did you overcome it?

*The research was challenging, but fun too.

AOB: What other YA/MG books have you written? Do any of them feature a key dog character? If so, which ones?

What are these stories about?

*I’ve always loved dogs and most of my books have a dog character, even if it’s just in a small part. Sometimes my own personal dogs that make their way into my books, but mostly they are dogs created for the book. Lewis and Clark and Me was based on a real dog – Seaman, Meriwether Lewis’s Newfoundland.

My mother and sister are dog lovers too and the books we’ve written together have lots of dogs – My Dog My Hero, Dog Diaries.

AOB: What kind of story can we expect next from you? Is it about a dog? If so, what is it about?

* My sister, Betsy Duffey (also a dog lover), and I are writing together now and our next published book is an adult Christian novel, THE SHEPHERD’S SONG. We are also working on a Christmas book, and yes, there is a dog in it.

AOB: Can you remember the first book that made an impact on you? And why?

*I have always loved books with animals – Old Yeller was one favorite, and Charlotte’s Web.

AOB: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

*Read Read Read and Write Write Write

AOB: Where can readers go to find out more information about you and/or your books?

Web page

Web page

Facebook

Twitter

Other

Other

Thank you Laurie Myers for joining us at Best Dog Books!

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.

The village of Palekh in Russia

Long, long ago, over the course of three centuries the little village of Palekh emerged as one of the leading centers of iconic painting in Russia. Its face and long traditions, however, changed dramatically after The Great Revolution of 1917. Because of the strong bond between the House of Romanovs and the Orthodox Church of Russia, the painting of icons was prohibited. Just as the Bolsheviks persecuted the Tsar and his court, they were also determined to rid Russia of anything related to the imperial family. The Church was among the first targeted.

A Russian Icon

Nearly overnight painters of icons were out of work. While many artists fled Russia for Paris and other western countries to continue painting icons, others remained in the small Russian village of Palekh where they eventually founded the Old Painting Artel in 1924. Determined to preserve the skills that a long line of fathers had passed down to their sons, and over many meetings sipping chai, they chose to use their talent to paint miniatures on black lacquer paper-mache boxes. And since these artists were encouraged to paint safe themes, many painters turned to Russian folklore and fairytales.

Leo Tolstoy telling fairy tales to his grandchildren, 1909.

The telling of tales was an old tradition in Russia, keeping Tsars and Tsarinas entertained for endless hours. Storytellers were formally a coveted position where the oral tradition was passed down again from father to son. “This oral style of the folktale was important to the development of some of Russia’s greatest prose writers, such as Tolstoy, Pushkin, and Dostoevsky, among others.

Russian Fairy Tales by Leo Tolstoy

Tolstoy remembered bedtime stories told to him by an old serf whom his grandfather had bought simply because he knew so many tales and told them so well.” (The Firebird and Other Russian Fairy Tales, p 8.)

The Firebird

In the heart and mind of every Russian live the images of the Firebird, the Snow Maiden, Ruslan and Ludmilla, to name a few. Up until the artists of Palekh redirected their talents, these characters and tales remained primarily in Russia. But because so many artists brought these characters alive in their miniatures, interest in these fairy tales began to reach audiences well beyond Russia’s borders.

The Firebird edited by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was so fond of Boris Zvorkin’s work in Palekh miniatures, she brought them to the United States.

Using experience of Lukutino miniature painting and art traditions of the Old Russian masters, Golikov started to create miniatures from fairy tales. His charming and original works fascinated his former colleagues of icon painting. Many joined his efforts.

Images of early Palekh Boxes from the Palekh Museum

Even their first works found a broad response among experts in Russia and abroad. The first exhibitions of Palekh in Paris and Venice made a sensation. Golikov’s miniatures, in spite of their size, expressed a spirit of time rather well. (Lacquer Miniatures Palekh, p 3.)

Laquer Miniatures Palekh

Folklore energy soon fed the soul of miniaturist-painters and helped to shape Russian culture as seen from within and perceived from the outside. “The most popular motif in a Palekh miniature has always been and remains the image of Zhar-Ptitsa or the Firebird, known as a symbol of beauty, eternal youth and happiness.”  (Lacquer Miniatures Palekh, p 15.)

Boris Zvorkin’s Original Firebird Cover

But this was not the only effort to fuel the birth of Russian fairy tales. Among those living in exile post revolution, Boris Zvorkin did his part, too. By crafting a book of fairy tales, he presented a gift of gratitude to his employer for a new life, celebrating all he valued and missed in the old. Like the counterparts he left in Russia, he, too, was drawn to the Firebird and named his book rightfully after the great bird of life.

The Snow Maiden

Years after the Russia he knew had disappeared, Boris Zvorkin tried to recapture the richness of that distant culture he held in his heart. Against a backdrop of gray Paris skies, he painstakingly wrote out in French the Russian phrases long familiar to him, and brushed his brilliant colors into pictures of onion domes and flowing rivers, gray wolves and exotic princes.  (The Firebird and Other Russian Fairy Tales, p 6.)

As Russia embarks on a new journey post the fall of the Soviet Union, offering glasnost and perestroika to those who wish to express themselves without restrictions, many artists have returned to painting icons. Many more are looking for new forms of expression, sometimes denying centuries-old experience instilled by the Palekh masters to reflect the tastes of customers today. With the doors wide open and competing market tastes, I have no doubt that fairy tales will continue to remain a prominent theme among Palekh artists.

Today I welcome Valerie Hobbs to Best Dog Books, a blog that features interviews with authors who’ve written a canine story for kids or young adults.

AOB: What is the title of your book? Pub date and publisher? Genre? Targeted age group? Illustrator? 

WOLF

October 5, 2013

Frances Foster Books; Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Ages 7-10

AOB: Who is your key dog character(s) and what kind of dog is he/she? Feel free to list as many different breeds or mixes as necessary. Tell us a little more about him/her.

Jack is purebred border collie. In his first book, SHEEP, which won a California Young Reader Medal, he was homeless until he met– and saved the life of–Luke, a 10-year-old orphan.

AOB: In 70 words or less, provide a succinct plot description of your story.

It is ten years later, Jack and Luke have been adopted and living happily on a sheep ranch in northern California. Jack is aging and though he does not want to retire, he knows it’s his responsibility to find among the other dogs a new leader. Meanwhile, coyotes in the area have been killing sheep. Jack can deal with coyotes but when a rabid wolf turns up, even he, the bravest of brave dogs, worries that an encounter with this wolf will cost him his life.

Links to reviews or blurbs you wish to share:

HOBBS, Valerie. Wolf. 128p. Farrar/Frances Foster. Oct. 2013. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-0-374-31575-7.

Gr 3-7–This triumphant and satisfying sequel to Sheep (Farrar, 2006) is sure to excite readers. Jack, the faithful, prizewinning Border collie, is aging but as determined as ever to fulfill his duties: protecting his boy, Luke, and their sheep from coyotes. Though his mind is quick as a wink, his body is beginning to slow and he needs to decide which of his kin will be the next great sheepherder. Just as Jack is coming close to making his decision, a new and more dangerous predator, a rabid wolf, appears and threatens the idyllic life on the ranch. Jack is faced with his ultimate moral dilemma–duty or love? Hobbs does it again in this engaging and heart-wrenching story. Not only will readers delve into the story through the eyes of Jack, but they will also catch a glimpse into the thoughts of the antagonist, creating a mixed sense of empathy and apathy, challenging them to consider the roles and perspectives of each character more fully. The story has an element of suspense and will keep children coming back for more. The author clearly respects the intellect of her young audience, creating an emotionally complex plot in which not all story lines have a happy ending. Fans of Sheep will consider this a must-read, and those who are unfamiliar with it will enjoy the story as well.–Amy Shepherd, St. Anne’s Episcopal School, Middleton, DE

KIRKUS REVIEW

In the sequel to Sheep (2006), Hobbs revisits border collie Jack and his owner, Luke, on Olaf and Katrin’s ranch.

The tale is told in the third person alternately from the perspectives of Jack, remarkably clever even for a border collie, and, in italics, that of a lonely wolf that is bitten by a large rabid rodent and then begins menacing both sheep and sheepdogs. Given this setup, there’s plenty of action to sustain interest. After the wolf kills a sheep and then one of the dogs, and another dog goes missing, Luke is determined to track and shoot the animal. Jack, his constant companion, comes along of course, though he’s torn between protecting the sheep and the other dogs, concerned about impetuous Luke and fearing that he’s losing his strength to old age. A scene depicting Jack’s performance—and loss to a younger dog—in a county-fair sheepherding trial is poignant and affecting. While the italicized sections portraying the wolf’s point of view are sympathetic to his plight, the complex struggle between sheep farmers and predators is only hinted at and then somewhat minimized by using a rabid animal to represent the predator. Jack, as in his first outing, is an attractive, very likable main character, offering lots of appeal for pet lovers.

Dog owners all know how smart their pets are; readers will lap up Jack’s tale and beg for more. (Fiction. 8-12)

AOB: What inspired you to write this story?

Visiting Wolf Haven International in Washington (state) where wolves are rehabilitated and loved.

AOB: What was the biggest challenge you had writing your story? How did you overcome it?

Writing a book that was both a sequel and stand alone. I avoided using big chunks of backstory and just filled in facts where they were needed.

AOB: What other YA/MG books have you written? Do any of them feature a key dog character? If so, which ones?

What are these stories about?

Besides Sheep, Maggie And Oliver is a homeless-girl- meets-homeless-dog story that takes place at the turn of the century in Boston.

AOB: I’d love to feature MAGGIE AND OLIVER on Dog Reads! What kind of story can we expect next from you? Is it about a dog? If so, what is it about?

In many of my books a dog plays at least a minor part. The book I just finished is about a fourteen-year-old girl living in a car with her mother in a Walmart parking lot.

AOB: What else would you like us to know about you or your story?

 Clearly, I have something going with homelessness. Carolina Crow Girl, my third novel, is about a girl living in an old school bus.

AOB: Can you remember the first book that made an impact on you? And why?

I loved the Golden Book called The Poky Little Puppy (I may have that title wrong)because I was the poky little girl who was always at least twenty minutes late for kindergarten because I had to stop and examine everything on my way.

AOB: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

The same advice everybody gives, I think, which is to READ. Read a book for pleasure the first time and study the way it was done the next time.

AOB: Where can readers go to find out more information about you and/or your books?

www.valeriehobbs.com

Thank you Valerie Hobbs for joining us at Best Dog Books!

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.