About the Book
February just stinks! Or so Stanley thinks.
Meet Stanley, the silly little pup who loves so many things about the calendar year—the celebrations, special days, and surprises—well, except the month of February.
February's freezing! And it's gloomy. And what's with the whole leap year thing? Why is February a month at all?
Join Stanley as he trots through the calendar in playful rhyme, celebrating all the wonderful things every month has to offer (well, almost every one). Along the way, Stanley may just find that even his least favorite month is filled with joy.
Who knows? Maybe there's a place for February in Stanley's heart after all . . .
About the Author
J.S. Kurtz is a photographer, writer, and storyteller based in Dallas. Over the years, he has worked as a sports broadcaster, photographer, producer, and editor, including time in several local TV markets and at CNN in New York City. His career has taken him up and down the East Coast, covering everything from championship games to major national events. In 2024, he founded Texas-based Kurtz Clicks, where he continues to tell stories through the lens. A graduate of Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, J.S. grew up in Framingham, Massachusetts, where his love of dogs first began. This is his first children's book.
About Stanley
Stanley is the real-life rescue dog of the Kurtz family. One of eight siblings discovered abandoned in a field in Tijuana, Mexico, they soon found their way to a Los Angeles-based shelter called Pups Without Borders.
Given the proximity to Christmas they were each named after a reindeer. Before he was Stanley, he was known as Blitzen.
Two months later, a Kurtz family caravan made its way to California, returning with their newest family member. Blitzen was soon renamed Stanley and found his forever home in the month of February! Perhaps February didn’t stink after all?
About the Illustrator
Brian Fitzgerald is an award-winning, Irish illustrator who lives and works in the harbour town of Dún Laoghaire. His earliest illustrations often featured the sheep and horses that could be seen from his childhood home—a farmhouse on the Curragh plains. Brian studied at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin where he discovered his love for illustrating children's books.
