Out in space, on the other side of the sun, is the Planet of the Dogs® Dogs have always lived there in peace and happiness. Long ago there were no dogs on Planet Earth. Peaceful lives were being disrupted...Invaders threatened Green Valley... Children were kidnapped and taken to the Castle in the Mist… two of Santa’s reindeer were missing and there would be no Christmas. The Planet Of The Dogs series tells of how dogs came down to earth to help bring peace, to teach people about love, loyalty, and courage – and to save Christmas. All books in the series have the dogs finding non-violent solutions to danger created by violent rulers and warrior tribes. Continue reading

The importance of children's books in opening the mind to the door of life and the world of imagination is beyond measure. The importance of a dog in the life of a child is also beyond measure. It was from thoughts like these that the Planet Of The Dogs Series evolved... Continue reading

Compromising or changing a story for the purpose of wider distribution and bigger sales in the world of children's books, and movies made from children's books, continues unabated -- a practice that extends as far back as the brothers Grimm. Continue reading

There is a storm of concern in the world of children's and Young Adult (YA) literature. It revolves around the the issues of content that may be inappropriate or even harmful to young readers...And there are few guidelines in the current era regarding brutality, violence and fear. Continue reading

I found it fascinating, in as much as our books, the Planet Of The Dogs series, appear to be an anathema to the Grimm tales, and therefore, Mr Pullman's celebrated new book. Here are excerpts from the editorial that illustrate the differences... Continue reading

"Yet the world depicted in our books is often dangerous and invading tribes struggle for power. However, non-violence plays a major role as the dogs demonstrate when they overcome warrior tribes, violent despots, and the king of the North. " Continue reading

In Castle In The Mist, the dogs must choose whether to kill the leader of a warrior tribe who has taken land, abused people, kidnapped children, tried to start war, and tried to kill the dogs. The dogs face an age old dilemma: where do you draw the line... what action do you take when, with one move, you have your enemy by the throat? Continue reading

Their are invaders, warriors, evil rulers , and dangers in our Planet Of The Dogs Series. But there is also hope. However, as our readers become older and enter the booming book world of young adults (YA) there seems to an absense of hope. There is, instead, darkness. Continue reading

I believe that every president, prime minister, king, despot and dictator should have a dog. It might not solve the problems of this world, but it would help. Continue reading

Do you believe that dogs can stop war? The only hope in the land of the Forest people, was the dogs... It was up to the dogs, coming down from their own planet, to free the kidnapped children, and to find non-violent ways to bring peace to the land. Continue reading

My conclusion is that every president, prime minister, king, despot and dictator should have a dog. It might not solve the problems of this world, but it would help. Continue reading

If your younger sister's life is at stake and you have survival skills, how to you plot a way to prevail when there are others who would kill you? How can you stop violence without violence?The dilemma for Katniss and Peeta in the postapocalyptic world of the Hunger Games has been a problen for people for millennium. Continue reading

When mounted warrior tribes threaten the farmers of Green Valley and conquer the land of the Forest people, it is up to the dogs to stop them in a non-violent way. Continue reading

Imagine this...you have never seen a dog, perhaps you have heard about them, but never seen one. The time is long ago... most people are farmers, fishermen, hunters or traders. Like you, very few have seen a dog. There is abundance in the land, the waters and the forests. However, there are also invaders, warrior tribes, ruthless conquerers who sweep through the lands bringing chaos and pain. Imagine the difference a dog would mean to a family, a settlement or a tribe. Or to a child. Dogs could provide comfort, solace, warning and protection... Continue reading

I don't want to mislead our readers about non-violence in a violent world. But perhaps in our books they will see something of the possibilities for non-violence in the the "real" world, as the dogs, with their unconditional courage, loyalty, and cleverness overcome invaders, swords, and warriors on horses...and bring peace to the land. Continue reading

Flying Reindeer...myth and reality...If you were to ask Santa or his elves if flying reindeer are a myth, they would smile and say, "How do you think all the presents are delivered?" We live part of the year in Finland, a land where the Sami people, a culture with orgins going back thousands of years, have always raised multitudes of reindeer...for food, shelter, clothing, blankets,tools, sled pulling, and survival. Consider this...Long , long ago, if Santa's special reindeer did not exist -- or went missing, or were kidnapped -- there would have been no Christmas, an immense loss for children everywhere. In fact, it's impossible to calculate the sad impact of such a catastrophe. Continue reading

I was Disturbed by Dogster when I read an irresponsible front page lead article by Dogster's training and behavior expert, Casey Lomanaco, entitled Don't Call Me Dog Whisperer. It disturbed me because it was factually inaccurate, unbalanced and blatantly self serving. Dogster has over 2 million unigue visitors a month. I was somewhat relieved to see some excellent comments pointing out the errors and bias found in Ms Lomanoco's disturbing article. Two excellent corrective comments were made by two professional dog trainers, Coleen Falconer (EnlightenedK9) and Justine Perry (K9Balance). Continue reading

The healers knew about the healing powers of dogs, and worked with them in much the same way that therapy dogs and their owners do today...to raise the spirits of the sick, the old and the infirm...to calm the fears of children and to stimulate the health of many. I don't know how many therapy dogs are helping people; however, I do know that last year, over one million people benefitted from the over ten thousand Pet Partner members of the Delta Society. Continue reading

A castle is a place for the imagination to soar...where the past is part of the present...a tangible reminder of conflict, power and struggle... Continue reading

What books should young kids read that appeal to their imagination, to their love of good stories, and have some relevance to the world around them? When our readers become young teens, they read well-written and imaginative books that deal with violence, but usually without considering, or even mentioning, non-violent solutions...Like the Planet of the Dogs series, they are usually set in a time and place far removed from the present...setting a book in the past, or on other worlds in the future, provides authors with more freedom to exercise their imagination. The prize winning novels of the Chaos Walking series by Patrick Ness recount how "War makes monsters of men"...the bloody conquest of the Middle Ages have inspired George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire popular series of conquest and power stuggles (over 15 million in book sales worldwide)...and in Christopher Paolini's Best selling Eragon, the evil king Galbatorix creates havoc and violence amidst dragons,elves,dwarfs and humans. Violence, power struggles, and conquest are central themes in all these books Do our books, that put forth non-violent solutions to the threat of war and invaders, still have a valid place in this world? Never mind that these solutions are created by dogs and kids. Continue reading