Presented to: Rick Walton
For: Bertie Was a Watchdog
Over the last sixteen years, Rick Walton has published over 50 children's books with both national and regional publishers, with several more to be published soon. One might suspect that such prolificacy would detract from the quality of his work, but Walton's books have maintained a consistent level of literary excellence that continues to make them popular with readers. Bertie Was a Watchdog perfectly represents the high caliber of Walton's work. In clever, simple language enhanced by dynamic artwork, this story of a dog no bigger than a watch is entertaining to look at and excellent to read aloud. The tale harks back to a certain kind of fairy tale recorded by the Grimms in which a weak but clever individual outsmarts the huge, terrifying giant; the book dresses this old story up in sharp new clothes and sends it out into the world to captivate a new generation of children. We applaud Rick Walton's continuing efforts to create excellent fiction for children of all ages.