Things I Learned from My Dog

A child’s heartfelt friendship with its dog becomes an unexpected source of life’s most important lessons.

 

Out with his mother at the Sunday market, a six-year old boy asks her if they can buy a dog — and the answer reshapes his entire childhood.

Over the course of the next decade, Luna, his best friend and the dog from that fateful day, is not only by his side during the most important moments, but also unknowingly the one who teaches him some of the most valuable lessons he’ll ever learn.

Things I Learned From My Dog shows us the extent to which friendship, love, and loss can guide our paths and shape us into the people we will become.

 

 

IN THE MEDIA

 

"This poignant picture book about the joys of canine companionship and the lasting aches of loss is vivified by sweet, antiqued illustrations in the style of intricate pencil sketches; it is sure to warm every pet lover’s heart." - Foreword Reviews

 

"Told through the eyes of an adult reflecting on lessons learned with a childhood dog, this sweet picture book by Santos follows a youngster who spots two puppies at a Sunday market—one pristine, one flea-ridden—and is steered by Mom toward the bedraggled choice. Seiferling works in her signature brown and white graphite style (...) serves this story beautifully. The story’s final turn gives the book emotional weight and multigenerational resonance that will land hard with parents reading aloud. A stunningly crafted tribute to dogs and the lives they enrich." - Kirkus (starred review)
 

"Yep. It’s a dog book. And maybe the prettiest one you’ve seen in a long long time. " - Betsy Bird, School Library Journal

 

"While Santos’s text tells the story perfectly, Seiferling’s illustrations take the story to the next level. The pencil strokes invoke a dreamlike quality to the protagonist’s memories of Luna. Keen-eyed readers will appreciate the symbolism of some of the illustrations, including the moment the protagonist meets his spouse (with dreams of future puppies), and at the end of Luna’s life, the painting of dogs running on a farm. [...] The story will resonate with anyone who has ever loved an animal, and perhaps most especially with older readers or those experiencing the loss of a pet." - Quill & Quire

 

 

THE AUTHOR 

 

Victor D.O. Santos is a Brazilian-American author and professional linguist who penned and self published his first picture book as a gift to his son in 2020. After his eighth self-published effort My Dad, My Rock locked down a Kirkus Star and a spot on Kirkus’s Best Books of 2022 list, he began drawing the attention of publishers worldwide. Today, he is best known for the internationally acclaimed picture book What Makes Us Human, selected to the prestigious White Ravens 2023 catalogue and a special exhibition at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, and translated into 30 languages.

 

 

THE ILLUSTRATOR

 

Dena Seiferling is a Canadian artist specializing in illustration and sculpting, who has a soft spot for animals and nature. A graduate of Alberta University of the Arts, where she continues to teach, Seiferling is most notably a 2022 recipient of the New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Book award and a 2019 Governor General’s Literary Award nominee (Children’s Literature - Illustration). Her needle-felting art has also been featured by Disney. She lives in Calgary.