Stick Dog Q&A
Recently, Tom Watson interviewed the main character in his Stick Dog books. The interview took place at Stick Dog’s home – a big pipe that runs beneath Highway 16.
Tom Watson: Hi, Stick Dog.
Stick Dog: Hey.
TW: Before we get started, I just wanted to say thanks for letting me write about your food-finding adventures. It’s a lot of fun.
SD: No problem.
TW: Do you like the stories?
SD: I do. But I wish you could draw me better. I’m really a lot better looking than that.
TW: Umm, yeah. Anyway. I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions?
SD: Sure.
TW: Okay, here goes. We know what breed all your friends are. Karen is a dachshund. Mutt’s a mutt. Poo-Poo is a poodle. And Stripes is a dalmatian. But what breed are you?
SD: That’s a great question. And I have a great answer.
TW: What is it?
SD: I have no idea.
TW: Okay, umm. Next question, I guess. What’s your favorite thing to eat?
SD: Hamburgers. Hot dogs. And, let’s see … pizza is third, I think.
TW: I’m curious about how you met all your friends. I know some things, but not all the details. Stripes, for instance. How did you meet her?
SD: I was looking for scraps behind the mall. They have a food court in there and I can usually scrounge up something in the alley behind it. That’s what I was doing when I heard all this yelling. Then one of the guards at the mall opened the back door – and Stripes came running out real fast. She looked scared and like she was in trouble, but also kind of funny.
TW: Funny? How?
SD: She had nacho cheese sauce all over her face. It was like black and white and orange all over. Anyway, that’s how we met. She was upset and I tried to help her feel better. We’ve been friends ever since.
TW: Interesting. Here’s another question: Do the other dogs stay with you in your pipe?
SD: Not usually. If it’s really cold or late, we might have a sleepover. But they all have their own sleeping places. We almost always hang out together during the day though.
TW: Isn’t Poo-Poo just the silliest name?
SD: Yes. But he is a poodle, so it makes sense.
TW: Don’t you ever want to stop Poo-Poo from hitting his head into things on purpose?
SD: I do stop him most the time.
TW: Who decorated your place? I love what you’ve done with it.
SD: Do you? Thanks. Karen was the lead designer. She calls it ‘early-industrial.’
TW: What are you looking at?
SD: Excuse me?
TW: Well, we’re having this nice conversation and everything and now you seem to be staring at my feet.
SD: Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just your socks.
TW: What about them?
SD: Well, they look really soft and Mutt likes to chew on socks a lot. And I was just wondering ...
TW: You want my socks so you can give them to Mutt to chew on?
SD: Well, not to just chew them.
TW: What else?
SD: He’ll swallow them too. He eats the whole thing.
TW: Okay, here you go. The socks are yours.
SD: Thanks. Mutt will love them.
TW: Do you always look out for your friends like that?
SD: I try to.
TW: And do they look out for you too?
SD: Umm, occasionally.
TW: Can you give me an example?
SD: Let’s see, let’s see. Well, once Stripes wanted to shoot me out of a catapult and through a glass window.
TW: And that was being nice?
SD: It’s hard to explain. We were trying to get some food and she had this plan. She meant well.
TW: What kind of food were you trying to get?
SD: Pizza.
TW: Could I write about that for the next book?
SD: Sure. It was a pretty funny adventure. I’ll tell you all about it later.
TW: I want to ask a question about Karen. I was wondering: Has she ever actually caught her tail?
SD: Only once. January 16 – a day that will live in infamy.
TW: Thanks, Stick Dog. This was fun and informative.
SD: That’s it?
TW: That’s it.
SD: Umm, I was wondering if maybe I could ask you a question now?
TW: Sure. Shoot.
SD: Do you have any food?
TW: I don’t. But I’d be happy to take you out for hamburgers. Would you like that?
SD: Yes! And then could we go out for hot dogs after that?
TW: You bet.
SD: And pizza for dessert?
TW: You got it.
SD: And can I bring a few friends?
TW: How many?
SD: Four.
TW: No problem.
From the Back Cover
In this second book, Stick Dog is at it again—and he's hungrier than ever. He and his four friends, Poo-Poo, Mutt, Stripes, and Karen, must execute a master plan to steal some hot dogs. But the closer they get to the hot-dog vendor, the more obstacles they meet, including:
- A team of raccoons that wants the hot dogs too
- Hot-dog-snatching plans that are a little, umm, not so hot
- A dognapping . . . sort of
Readers will delight once again as Stick Dog and his gang of goofballs work to overcome these challenges and more—to satisfy their hunger for hot dogs.
About the Author
Tom Watson lives in Chicago with his wife, daughter, and son. He also has a dog, as you could probably guess. The dog is a Labrador-Newfoundland mix. Tom says he looks like a Labrador with a bad perm. He wanted to name the dog "Put Your Shirt On" (please don't ask why), but he was outvoted by his family. The dog's name is Shadow. Early in his career Tom worked in politics, including a stint as the chief speechwriter for the governor of Ohio. This experience helped him develop the unique, storytelling narrative style of the Stick Dog books. More important, Tom's time in politics made him realize a very important thing: Kids are way smarter than adults. And it's a lot more fun and rewarding to write stories for them than to write speeches for grown-ups.
