Dogs and Cats, Cats and Dogs

Prolific Canadian children’s book author Kathy Stinson has followed the trend of dog/cat books this spring with her newest picture book The Dog Who Wanted to Fly.

Zora really wants to chase a squirrel but is just not fast enough.  She thinks, if she can fly she can catch the squirrel. In typical cat form, Tully, lounging in the tree, confidently declares “Dogs can’t fly!”  Zora and Tully learn that dogs actually can fly, given the right motivation, like helping out a friend.

The Dog Who Wanted to Fly is a sweet story about pursuing dreams and friendship.  What makes this story especially wonderful is the vibrant art by Brandon James Scott.  The illustrations fly off the pages. There is so much movement and vitality in the art, readers will be drawn right in and will stick around for the fun little story.  It’s important to remind children they can do anything. So often they are told they can’t do things so having stories that affirm for them they can do anything, even if it seems impossible, is so very important. We are living in fear all the time of the unexpected because we are hearing about terrible accidents and horrible world events. It makes us ultra cautious, especially as parents and educators.  We forget the necessary role risky play plays in our children’s development so books like The Dog Who Wanted to Fly remind our children to try.