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GOOD MORNING TEXAS – WFAA-TV (ABC Affiliate): DOG-Tober Month
Thursday, October 1st, 2026
Featuring new children’s book author J.S. Kurtz with Stanley the Rescue Pup, the inspiration behind Stanley Thinks February Stinks.
STROLL MAGAZINE UNIVERSITY PARK
November 2026
Article coming soon!
PEOPLE NEWSPAPERS
November 2026
Story coming soon!
Press Kit
Get all the latest details and promotional materials for Stanley Thinks February Stinks!
Stanley Thinks February Stinks
J.S. Kurtz
Illustrated by Brian Fitzgerald
ISBN-13: 978-1-61254-842-5
Hardcover - Price: $16.99; Page count: 32 pages
Dimensions: 8” x 8”
Publisher Imprint: Brown Books Kids
Publication Date: September 29, 2026
Categories: Children’s Picture Book; Juvenile Fiction/Holidays & Celebrations, Months of the Year
Website: jasonkurtzauthor.com
Books are available online and in bookstores
SUMMARY OVERVIEW
Stanley was a silly dog, a funny little pup. While Stanley loved many things, February tripped him up.
(Based on real people and events)
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 everyone). 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 with Stanley, the Lucky Rescue Pup.
J.S. Kurtz is a photographer, writer, and storyteller based in Dallas, Texas. Over the years, he has worked as a sports broadcaster, producer, and editor in several local TV markets, as well as 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, a story-telling company that offers creative services including photography, videography, and writing.
A graduate of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Jason 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 the 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.
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