My Books
While I’ve been writing since I was a child, it was a long and winding path to becoming a children’s book author, with fulfilling stops along the way in technology, coaching, and education. But I can honestly say that being a writer is the most rewarding thing I've done!
And I have some exciting news! My debut picture book, titled The Longest Letsgoboy, will be coming out on October 26th from Chronicle Books! We feel so fortunate to have received THREE starred reviews so far! See the below excerpts to find out what reviewers had to say!
And I have some exciting news! My debut picture book, titled The Longest Letsgoboy, will be coming out on October 26th from Chronicle Books! We feel so fortunate to have received THREE starred reviews so far! See the below excerpts to find out what reviewers had to say!
“Stunning, tender, and brilliant. Readers will laugh and cry—but most of all love.”--Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“[A]s genuinely doggy a narrative as ever there was . . . If there’s a dryeye in the house after this, check for a pulse.”--Booklist, starred review
“[The Longest Letsgoboy] is a perfect storm of tearjerk, with its supple poetry, canine narration, and picture of loss, but there’s a reassuring message about what we love remaining a part of us forever that youngsters may find find nearly as bolstering as the possibility of a new puppy.”--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review
This circle-of-life tale, illustrated by the amazing Catia Chien, is a testament to the enduring bond between people and their pets. It’s told from the perspective of an aging dog who knows he’s on his last letsgoboy, or walk in the woods, with his little girl. But before leaving he wants to bid farewell to his friends and make sure she will be taken care of.
This personal, semi-autobiographical story is based on Lakota, one of my Siberian huskies. He and Kaya, another husky, would often sit at my feet while I wrote on the back patio. One day, Lakota, who was already 14 years old at the time, got up and slowly began walking. I joined him, as we made our way along the edge of the woods that surround the yard. I felt like he was saying goodbye to everything around him. So I substituted my daughter as the main character and tried to put myself in Lakota's dog-world to try to figure out what he would be thinking…and The Longest Letsgoboy was born.
You can pre-order The Longest Letsgoboy here:
This personal, semi-autobiographical story is based on Lakota, one of my Siberian huskies. He and Kaya, another husky, would often sit at my feet while I wrote on the back patio. One day, Lakota, who was already 14 years old at the time, got up and slowly began walking. I joined him, as we made our way along the edge of the woods that surround the yard. I felt like he was saying goodbye to everything around him. So I substituted my daughter as the main character and tried to put myself in Lakota's dog-world to try to figure out what he would be thinking…and The Longest Letsgoboy was born.
You can pre-order The Longest Letsgoboy here:
Future Titles
Does a Bulldozer Have a Butt (Chronicle Books, spring 2022) – As you may have guessed by the title, this book could not be further removed from my debut. While I hope The Longest Letsgoboy touches readers’ hearts, this one is meant to tickle their funny bones. Illustrated by K-Fai Steele, it’s a rhyming romp that takes a lighthearted look at a most unlikely assortment of, well, butts. Along the way, we learn that each butt, from a zombie’s to a firefly’s, has its own distinctive, and distinctively humorous, quality!
This story was inspired by, of all people, my daughter. When she was 4 years old, we were sitting behind a school bus at a stop light. She peeked out from her car seat, pointed, and excitedly exclaimed, “Look, Daddy, that school bus has a butt!” Indeed it did, and I began writing the story, and looking for butts in peculiar places, that day.
I Made Those Ants Some Underpants (Chronicle Books, spring 2023) – This humorous, rhyming tale is a follow-up to book about butts, and I’m excited to again team with K-Fai as the illustrator. The storyline follows a boy who dons his creative hat to craft custom underpants for everything around him, from race cars to robots, and cowboys to clownfish. So while the topic certainly has a silliness factor, the main character also chooses to demonstrate generosity…just in his own unique way.
