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Thank you to The Horn Book and the Boston Globe. And to Lauri Hornik and Lily Malcom, my wonderful publisher and art director. And congratulations to Marla and Oliver. (Great choices, judges.)

A few words about It’s Only Stanley:

This is a love story. There’s a lot of love in this book — blind, delusional, human love along with deep, primordial, canine passion.

It’s the story of the Wimbledon family — dog-owners — who, like many of us, treat their beloved Stanley as if he’s a human being. I’m guilty of this. I have a little, fluffy dog, and it rarely occurs to me that she’s actually descended from a wolf — until I try and take away her bully stick.

The Wimbledons, though — they’re exceptional. They have such boundless respect for their beagle that even when they’re jarred out of bed in the middle of the night, and find him stringing up wires, tubes, and pipes through the floors and ceilings, creating smoke and foul smells and general wreckage, they simply can’t believe he’s doing anything but routine repairs on the house.

And why is Stanley so busy? Well, he’s in love. And in order to fulfill this urge, he needs to fly to the moon using the Wimbledons’ conveniently-shaped house as a rocket ship.

It’s Only Stanley began as more of a mystery. In the early versions, the story simply ended with Stanley on his way to the moon. My editor lingered on that ending:

“Jon, could there be something on the moon that a dog might like?”

“A chew toy?”

“No, Jon. Something a dog might really be attracted to?”

Editors can be like psychologists, gently leading you to your own conclusions. Or, as on that day, they can blurt out:

“What if, on the moon, Stanley meets another dog?!”

Ah! It was the missing piece. This “other dog” became a pink, lunar poodle, and It’s Only Stanley became a genuine love story.

In fact, if the story had a message, it might be: “Love will find a way.” But it could also be: “Beagles who wear tool-belts should never be trusted.”

From the January/February 2016 issue of The Horn Book Magazine. For more on the 2015 Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards, click on the tag BGHB15.

The post It’s Only Stanley: Jon Agee’s 2015 BGHB PB Honor Speech appeared first on The Horn Book.

It’s Only Stanley

By Jon Agee

Does your dog howl at the moon longingly? Does he keep you up nights with odd tinkering noises reminiscent of a Mr. Fix it Fido?

Be very careful. For if he does any or all of these nighttime endeavors, your pooch may just be another Stanley, and that means you and your family may just be in for the ride of your lives.

What appears on the surface (of the earth) to be the skillful Stanley working on needed house hold repairs on the bathtub drain, oil tank, old TV, not to mention a concocted perfumed odor of catfish stew brewing (think rocket fuel), it may really be a whole lot more. Much more.

For the Wimbledon family, kept awake at night by Stanley’s plumbing and electrical exploits, are in for an early Richard Branson-like flight to other realms, at no cost to them, to a place beginning with M and ending with N.

Jon Agee’s fantastic configurations of Stanley’s aeronautical attempts are nothing short of dog gone good. Sorry!

What drives Stanley? An other worldly pink poodle’s my best guess. How did they first discover one another? And how, bow wow, do they communicate, is anyone’s guess.

Nothing can stand in the way of true love’s first doggy date on the moon when you have a dog like Stanley. Let’s face it, Wimbledon family, you’re just along for the ride.

Trust me. If Stanley can get you there. He’ll get you back in time for breakfast.