Fido and Friend in Five: Kathi Appelt!

I am thrilled to have award-winning children's author Kathi Appelt in the spotlight this morning for Fido and Friend in Five! Kathi is a writer full of heart and magic. And she has away of writing about dogs, which of course, captured my admiration. Who can forget

the brave, big-hearted hound in The Underneath who sheltered kittens beneath his generous ears? And then, of course, there's every kid's best buddy, BD (Best Dog) in her latests book, Keeper. The dogs in her books (as well as her cats, of course!) are as richly realized as her four-footed characters and every bit as memorable.

So imagine my surprise when she told me she does not have a dog in her life right now! Being the selfless person I am, I offered to give her one of mine--the barkiest one. So for Fido and Friend in Five, Kathi remembers her grandmother's dog, B.D. who was the inspiration for the steadfast friend of Keeper.

• How did BD and your grandmother find each other? BD found my grandmother on the beach, not far from her house on Galveston Island. She was taking her usual morning walk and BD discovered her. After a quick dog-scan, he decided he would let her take him home and live out his days with her. He was a great dog, a champion bird chaser (his name stood for Bird Dog).
• What's your all-time favorite dog story? I love Amos in The Amazing Amos and the Greatest Couch on Earth, by Susan Seligson and Howie Schneider. Amos reminded me of a dog I had once named Copper. He was an Afghan Hound, and he and Amos were quite a bit alike. But above all, I just loved the humor and craziness of that book. I think I read it to my sons about a million times when they were small. Once in a while I just have to read it. It always makes me smile. I also loved Cracker in Cynthia Kodahata's beautiful book of the same name.
• What made BD smile? Singing.
• If BD could have changed one thing about you, what would it have been? My singing!
• In five words, tell us what BD meant to you: He loved my grandmother best.

Thanks to the amazing Kathi Appelt for stopping by Fido and Friend in Five!