We finished writing our fourth kids’ dog book, and our illustrator, Heather Nichols, just sent us the first illustration (above). It’s so exciting when Heather starts sending us illustrations. They make our stories come alive. This is the fourth time the talented Heather has illustrated our dog books. We met
We’ve written about superpower and superhero dogs: Using their keen sense of smell and ability to sense how humans feel, they help people with diabetes, autism, seizures and other conditions. For example, diabetic service dogs sound the alarm when they sense drops in kids’ blood sugar. They try to “tell” children
This week, our hearts are with Vera, our next book’s Ukrainian heroine and an important force for good–in the book and in real life. We were just finishing up our fourth book when Russia declared war on Ukraine. In the book, Vera is an assistant mayor and Bash’s grandmother from
We’re offering a free eBook and audiobook when you donate to Oregon Humane Society (OHS) and support the many animals the agency helps out. We’re raising money as part of OHS’s annual fundraising campaign, Doggie Dash. Donate any amount here: Our Doggie Dash Page As soon as you donate any
This week, we were excited to donate about 40 Bash and Lucy picture books, along with hundreds of used books, to the Children’s Book Bank, located here in Portland. We were looking for a place to donate both Bash and Lucy books and some of Michael’s used children’s books, and
We were thrilled when another children’s book author this week listened to our first kids’ audiobook, “Bash and Lucy Fetch Confidence,” and enjoyed the voices of the boys, age 5-7, who helped record it. “I listened to Bash & Lucy Fetch Confidence this morning and I was blown away. Hearing
Our fourth kids’ book stars Vera, a character based on Michael’s surrogate grandma, an immigrant from Ukraine. One of our aims in the book is to create a character who embodies goodness, just as Vera does in real life. When we spoke with Vera yesterday, she had recently received her
We started writing our kids’ dog books about seven years ago, after our dog, Lucy, died suddenly at the age of 6. To help us overcome our grief, we decided to write a book, “Bash and Lucy Fetch Confidence,” about how a dog named Lucy instilled confidence in the boys on
In our last book, “Bash and Lucy Fetch Team Vera and the Dream Beasts,” Vera is the assistant mayor and the coach of the most successful girls’ soccer team in the town. She’s a dog lover and an inspiration to kids. In our next book, the girl-power grandma and immigrant
What have we been doing while staying at home during the COVID-19 crisis? First of all, Michael has been busy reading books recommended by his 21-year-old sister, Ally, who was sent home from college in March. Those books include the Hunger Game series by Suzanne Collins, the Percy Jackson series