What will Kentucky Book Festival visitors find on your table?

I am a # 1 NYT bestselling author of 35 published books, the majority of which are written from the viewpoint of the dogs.  My most recent, Love, Clancy: Diary of a Good Dog describes the wacky life of Clancy, a yellow Labrador who is keeping a diary and plotting to get rid of the cat.  My two NYT bestselling series:  The A Dog’s Purpose series and the A Dog’s Way Home series, are less hilarious and more exciting and plot-driven than Love, Clancy, and, along with A Dog’s Journey, have been turned into feature films (I was one of the screenwriters for all of the films).

My table should also include a good supply of my novels for younger readers.  Zeus: Water Rescue is my latest in this category, a thrilling adventure story about a canine being trained in Hawaii to save drowning people.  Zeus is being trained for sale, but the dog trainer’s son Kimo has fallen in love with the dog and can’t bear to let him go.  Told from the dog’s point of view, Zeus: Water Rescue has all the heart of my other dog books, with a considerable amount of action and suspense.  My other novels are all in the Puppy Tales series, 10 total, each one following the life of a unique puppy learning its purpose.  Cooper’s Story tells the story of a wheelchair assist dog.  Ellie’s Story is the award-winning novel about a police dog.  These are all stand-alone novels that can be read in any order.

Finally, for even younger readers, the Lily to the Rescue novels describe the life of Lily, a rescued canine who lives at the animal shelter and helps his family (A veterinarian, a game warden, and third grade Maggie Rose) rescue baby animals.  These are delightful chapter books with light-hearted, funny stories and gorgeous illustrations.

Whom do you invite to stop by? Who will benefit from reading your book

I particularly enjoy meeting children and their parents.  I love hearing how having a dog narrator helps younger readers get into the stories.  Dog-lovers are naturally drawn to my work as well.  I write across a variety of genres—historical fiction, mystery/thriller, and family-oriented fiction.

Could you please tell us something curious about you and/or your book?

My first published book became the TV series 8 Simple Rules staring John Ritter and Kaley Cuoco.  At the time I was a humor columnist, and have won awards for my work:  The Robert Benchley Award, The Will Rogers Award, and Newspaper Columnist of the Year.  That’s why Love, Clancy: Diary of a Good Dog is so funny—I have an ear for what makes people laugh.

Is this your first time participating in Kentucky Book Festival? If yes – what are you looking forward to the most? If you’ve participated before – what was your favorite experience at the Festival?

I’ve been to this wonderful event once before, pre-Covid, I believe.  I love the bookseller and the space!  I have been doing a lot more public speaking since then, and have found I really enjoy connecting with people.  My messages seem to resonate—who doesn’t like dogs?