The Triumphant Tails of Rescue Dogs: Punk’s Plight by Dr. Hope A. Weir, EdD | Review & Giveaway
A book blog tour from iRead Book Tours.
Thank you to the author, publisher, & Lauren at iRead for providing me the information for this tour. 
Book Details
The Triumphant Tails of Rescue Dogs: Punk’s Plight by Hope A. Walter Published by Mascot Books on August 3, 2021
Genres: Adoption, Animals, Fiction, Children's, Social Services & Welfare, Inspirational & Personal Growth, Pets, Survival Stories
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 38
Source: iRead Book Tours, Received from the author or publisher for review.Punk is an eight-year-old petite English Bulldog who has had a hard life. Things are great right now, but they haven’t always been that way!
Join Punk as she tells her story of neglect, her rescue and recovery, and her journey of learning to trust and heal.
Punk’s Plight helps educators, psychologists, social workers, counselors, and other allies teach children about the topic of neglect. Punk’s story shows that while neglect may change you forever, it does not have to stop you from living your best life.
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My thoughts on The Triumphant Tails of Rescue Dogs: Punk’s Plight
Punk’s Plight is the perfect book for anyone thinking about adding a rescue dog to the family. It also has many correlations to neglect, abuse, and similar rescue situations children may find themselves in.
Dr. Walter tells the “tale” of Pumpkin (Punk) who once lived in a loving family. When the situation changed and Punk was no longer receiving the love and care he deserved, he was rescued by Xavier and taken to The Rescue and Recovery Ranch.
The story is told from Punk’s point of view, which is a unique style. We learn about the poor little guy’s feelings of abandonment and fear. It takes a lot of love to bring him out of his shell. Once he is nursed back to health, he gets a new family. Naturally, it takes a while to become acclimated to the situation. He will probably be leery of strangers for a long time, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a wonderful addition to a family.
The tale gives many chances for meaningful discussions between adults and children about difficult subjects pertaining to animals and youngsters.
The author has included many resources to help children and adults. There are questions to open the discussions about neglect, as well as, resources for adults to create a positive childhood experience.
If you aren’t ready for a heavy discussion, the story is well-told and beautifully illustrated so it will make a wonderful addition to any library.
I received a copy of the book for the tour. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.
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Easy Amazon Links
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About Hope A. Walter
Hope A. Walter, Ed. D grew up in East Greenville, Pennsylvania. After graduating from Upper Perkiomen High School, Hope received her B.S. in Elementary Education at Kutztown University in 1996, her M.S. in Educational Psychology in 2002 from the University of Las Vegas in Nevada, and her Ed.D in Educational Leadership in 2018. Currently, Hope resides in McMinnville, Oregon with her husband of 25 years, her 3 boys, and her 2 dogs and 2 cats. She works as an adjunct professor at Linfield University and Oregon State University teaching mathematics education and educational psychology to future teachers.
Punk’s Plight was conceptualized after teaching future teachers about Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Hope saw the connection between ACES and the journey of her own bulldog, Pumpkin, who was neglected, rescued, and spent the rest of her life learning how to trust and love again. Sadly, Pumpkin passed away peacefully in November 2020 after a long life with the Walter family. Hope wants Punk’s story to help children suffering from neglect by showing children they can recover, heal, and prosper despite experiencing neglect.
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Author Interview
What did you learn while researching rescue dogs?
I knew that a lot of animals have suffered neglect and abuse, but I didn’t realize how deeply personal these stories were for their human companions. People are very interested in sharing their experiences and stories of their rescue dogs, and it seems to be therapeutic for people to share the story they know of their pet. I think it is hard for most of us to imagine what life was like for our loved companions before they came to us, and it seems important for most people to try to piece together that story.
The other thing I noticed is that most people who have rescued an animal want to try to make up for that previous bad experience. Most rescue dogs that have experienced trauma tend to exhibit “unusual or atypical” behaviors, and it seems that these behaviors are often related to the type of neglect or abuse they experienced. Lastly, this is just my opinion, but I think rescue dogs are some of the best dogs around and I would encourage everyone to “adopt before they shop”. Lots of animals need a second chance to be loved.
There are many books out there about trauma. What makes your book different?
I think there are a few things that make Punk’s Plight different. First, it is not a self-help book, although it can be. It tells a story, and in that story, I hope you can take a piece of it to benefit you or a loved one of yours. Or perhaps you can just enjoy it as a story of triumph for this cute, scared bulldog. But, it also teaches children who have not experienced trauma what it is and why some other children might be shy, scared, or hesitant.
Secondly, in working with the experts in this field, I found that very few books provide a section on how to support positive childhood experiences (PCE). The research I did regarding PCE is included in the back and provides four simple, yet life-changing, components to creating positive childhood experiences. Lastly, the experts I worked with told me this is a book they do not have on their shelves. That is why I wrote it and made sure to work with the experts to get it right. I hope I did.
Tell us about Pumpkin.
Just like the story says, my family was lucky enough to be the ones to adopt Pumpkin after she was rescued by the Pacific Northwest Bulldog Rescue. Punk nearly died before she came to us, as she was so badly sick and neglected. In the book, Xavier rescues her and helps her heal. In real life, it was a lovely lady named Amity who took her in and helped her recover.
We got Punk when she was nearly 2. She was so small and cute and just wanted love. I have hundreds of pictures of her sleeping on top of or next to one of my three boys. She was a tiny couch potato, an avid co-pilot in any car you would let her in, and the loudest snorer/bed hog in the world. She was always nervous around new people and very protective of her boys. Her love for them was greater than her fear of a stranger. We had eight wonderful years with her. She passed quietly one night in our house. We will be forever grateful for our time with her. I miss her every single day.
Can you tell us about some of your favorite children’s books?
Being an elementary school teacher for nearly a decade, I have so many favorites it’s hard to choose, but there are a few that always stick out to me, mostly the most loved books from when my boys were little. We love the Chowder books by Peter Brown because who doesn’t love a silly bulldog?! We loved all the Richard Scarry books and we have read the covers off those. I also loved Giraffe and a Half by Shel Silverstein, and a sweet story called Kitten’s First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes.
I actually thought Punk’s Plight would have been black and white like these last two books because I loved the simplicity in the illustrations. One other book I have had for decades is Animalia by Graeme Base which is an alphabet book that has the most amazing illustrations and is great for teaching alliteration to upper elementary students!
How did you select your illustrator?
When I first decided I wanted to make this book I had a lot of specific ideas about how I wanted it to look. I didn’t want it to be a cartoon because I knew the topic did not lend itself to that. I wanted beautiful but honest images and calming and peaceful colors. I looked at several artists, but I was drawn to Susi’s work, and I really liked the idea that we were both Oregonians. I wanted to be able to connect with the illustrator.
We brainstormed ideas, and Susi made thumbnail sketches. Then we would discuss and revise and then she would draw them freehand with a pencil. Once we agreed on the sketches, she would set to water coloring them. I love the originals where you can see the pencil lines. It was great to work so smoothly with someone I had just met, and we are really excited to start our next book!
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Giveaway!
Win signed copy of THE TRIUMPHANT TAILS OF RESCUE DOGS: PUNK’S PLIGHT (USA only) (ends Sept 17)
TRIUMPHANT TAILS OF RESCUE DOGS: Punk’s Plight Book Tour Giveaway
Please visit more stops on the tour for extra chances to win!
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Purchase The Triumphant Tails of Rescue Dogs: Punk’s Plight online from a local book store.
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Purchase Links for The Triumphant Tails of Rescue Dogs
Amazon Amazon UK BookShop/IndieBound
The Book Depository Chapters/Indigo
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I love the premise of this, and that face on the cover!! I wish everyone with a heart for animals would adopt. Thank you for the review.