Many
years ago, my husband and I got a sweet dog that had been abandoned as a puppy
in a field near Atlanta, Georgia. A family had found him and one of the
children gave him the name, Brian, after a school friend. Brian was a lovable dog and also happened to be
a huge fan of broccoli. I was a first grade teacher at the time and we thought
this would be a fun way to get children to eat broccoli. In the story, Brian
and his best friend, Milo (our second dog) are consumed with the daily chase of
Fraidy cat (my parents’ persnickety pet).
The story follows the dogs’ constant pursuit of Fraidy and Milo becoming
trapped in a mud-filled pig pen. Brian comes to the rescue with his handy pouch
of broccoli which gives him amazing strength. We sketched the pictures and an
artist created the colorful images. All those years ago, we envisioned a series
in which Milo lands in difficult situations and is always rescued by Broccoli
Brian. Last year, Brian passed away after sixteen wonderful years with us and
Milo also recently died. We planted a tree in our front yard with Brian’s
ashes. The book is a testament to our devoted family pets and our love of
books.
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