Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour for
Bobbie Pyron's The Dogs of Winter.
The Dogs of Winter by Bobbie Pyron
Like thousands of other children in post-Soviet Russian, five-year-old Mishka finds himself trying to survive on the streets of Moscow after his mother disappears and he has no home. Help comes from an unlikely source: a pack a feral street dogs! For two years, Mishka and the dogs protect and love each other, becoming a family in every sense of the word. When Mishka has the chance to rejoin the world of humans, will he want to? Inspired by a true story!
Bobbie has joined us for an interview:
1. How many jobs did you have before you
became a writer? Although I’d wanted
to be a writer since I was about nine or ten years old, my life took a lot of
diversions before I got serious about writing. I’ve worked as a wilderness
education instructor, dog trainer, bookstore manager, professional singer, and
for the last twenty-five years, librarian. I figure it’s all grist for the
mill!
2. How do you decide what you want to write
about? I think for me, it’s more a
matter of what finds me, what voice comes to me. At any given time, I can have
three or four ideas for stories, but until the narrative voice comes, I can’t
write a thing. Most of the things I write about are born out of personal experiences
or a particular passion of mine, such as dogs. Sometimes, I read something and
it makes the hair rise up on the back of my neck and I think, this would make a great story! That’s
what happened with The Dogs of Winter. I
read a magazine article about feral children, and it opened with the story of
Ivan Mishukov, the real-life Russian boy who inspired my book.
3. What do you like to do when you’re not
writing? Be outside with my dogs! I
need to be out in nature a certain amount most every day. I love hiking,
snowshoeing, skiing, and backpacking with my three dogs. I’m very fortunate to
live in the mountains in a place that’s surrounded by lots of wilderness.
4. Who would you consider your favorite author
and why? I have a super crush on
Kate DiCamillo. I think she’s an amazing author! If I could write a
tenth as wonderfully as she does, I’d be a happy camper. She writes so
beautifully and compassionately, with a gentle humor. She writes completely
from the heart. In my humble opinion, she can do no wrong.
5. Coffee or tea? Tea! I have a cup of
green tea by my side as I write this. My husband says I’m a tea addict.
6. Rocks or flowers? Hmmm…I love them both, but if I had to
choose, I’d probably say rocks. They speak to me in a way flowers don’t.
7. Favorite color? Purple!
More about the author:
Bobbie was born in Hollywood, Florida and spent her growing up years up in the panhandle, swimming in the Gulf of Mexico and dreaming of being a mermaid. She has degrees in Psychology and Anthropology, and a Masters degree in Library Science, and has worked as a librarian for over twenty-five years.
Her first book, a novel for teens titled The Ring (WestSide Books), was published in October of 2009. Her second book, A Dog’s Way Home (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books), was published to starred reviews in March of 2011. The Dog Writers Association of America recently awarded Bobbie the Maxwell Medal of Excellence and the Merial Human-Animal Bond Award. It was also named a Banks Street Best Books of the Year.
Her new book, The Dogs of Winter (Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic), came out October of 2012. The Dogs of Winter is a Junior Library Guild Selection and a Kirkus Best 100 Children’s Books of the Year. Bobbie lives in Park City, Utah with her husband, three dogs, and two cats.
Bobbie’s Website.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BobbiePyron
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bobbie.pyron?fref=ts
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bobbie.pyron?fref=ts
This virtual book tour is presented by Teddy Rose at Premier Virtual Author Book Tours.
Click HERE for more tour information.
