From the Publisher: Pittsburgh Dog & Frog is an all-Pittsburgh children’s book that engages youth to learn about the city from historic sites to landmarks, rivers, bridges, and so much more. In the story, a hometown dog, named Heinz, is waiting on Mount Washington for a 57-foot frog to float up the Ohio River. The dog and frog form a friendship and discover the best Pittsburgh places to visit. IT’S WHIMSICAL, FANCIFUL, MAGICAL and a FUN WAY TO LEARN!
There are 24 colorful Pittsburgh illustrations in the 48-page book. Kids learn factoids such as:
• The Three Sisters Bridges (why do they all look alike?)
• George Washington and Guyasuta (how did they meet?)
• The Hot Metal Bridge (what does hot metal refer to?)
• The Gulf Tower (why does the beacon change colors?)Last, but not least, the dog & frog discover an infamous Pittsburgh Cookie Table!
More info About the Author: Annette Hostoffer lives and works in Pittsburgh, PA. During the COVID-19 lockdown, she was inspired to write this book so children could explore everything outdoors. Visit Annette’s website at: www.pghdog.com.
Don’t miss out: Annette will be selling her book at the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books on Saturday, May 13. For event info, visit: pittsburghbookfestival.org.
Book Festival
Just look—I can see everything from here!
My name is Heinz and I am the luckiest dog in the world. I don’t know how I got so lucky. But one of my earliest memories as a puppy was hearing a voice coming from above my basket saying, “You are one lucky dog!” And whoever that was, was absolutely right.
My life is great! I have an amazing family of humans who love me, and we live high above the great city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Our neighborhood is called Mount Washington. And almost every day, after my morning walk, I sit on my favorite rock and look down at the big city below.
Tourists come from all over the world to take pictures. But, for me, well, I just like to sit here and watch the sun each morning rising slowly behind the tall buildings. What a GRAND view it is!
And of course, there’s George and Guy—the amazing sculpture of two very important men who lived a long time ago.
George is George Washington, the first president of the United States and before that, a great General. Guy, whose whole name is Guyasuta, was a very important and powerful Native American leader of the Seneca people.
The two men stood here on my rock almost three hundred years ago looking down at the place where two wide rivers meet to form a third river. There was nothing there but the sparkling water filled with fish and lots of trees and animals like deer and rabbits, eagles and hawks. Guyasuta wanted this beautiful place to stay the way it was, but General Washington had other ideas.
This place, where the Allegheny and the Monongahela rivers meet to form the grand Ohio River, is very different today. Giant buildings, called skyscrapers, now stand where the forest was. And at night those skyscrapers glow with millions of lights.
My favorite Pittsburgh building is the Gulf Tower. It has a special rooftop that looks like dazzling blocks of colored ice stacked-up tall at the very top. The special top flashes colors. When it flashes blue it means cold weather, orange means pleasant weather and red means it’s hot enough to go swimming.
Speaking of swimming—today, I am waiting for a really-cool visitor who is coming to Pittsburgh. He’s a super-big, yellow, rubber frog that floats! I’m hoping I’ll be the first to see him as he comes up the river on his lily pad. I heard my humans say that this 57-foot frog is going to be the star of the “Anything that Floats” river parade.
People come from everywhere to enter their floating creations in the parade. I’ve seen people floating in bathtubs and wash tubs, on sofas, and even magic carpets.
But they say there has never been anything in Pittsburgh like this gigantic, yellow frog. And I heard that after the parade, the frog will be docked at Pittsburgh’s Point, where people can come by and take pictures of him.
But I’m a little sad about this business of the frog being docked because I think it means something like being tied up. And being a dog, I am not a fan of that. So, if I hurry and get there first, maybe I can make friends with this big frog and think up some ways we can have some real fun, Pittsburgh style.
Ooooh, here he comes. I see him! He is so big! He is so bright—he’s so yellow! I better get down there if I want to meet him before the big event begins.
Heinz takes a look and tries to decide how to get down the big, steep Mount Washington bluff and head for the river so that he can be the first to meet the frog.
At first, he creeps very carefully, zigzagging his way down—like a skier on a steep, icy mountain only much, much slower. What if people start to notice the frog in the river and begin to crowd along the shore? I must get there first or I’ll never be able to get close to him!
Heinz decides it might be faster to slide on his bottom, but soon he’s tumbling head over tail, head over tail, head over tail. Some tree roots stop him for a few seconds and then he slides some more on his bottom.
Next, he’s somehow sliding on his belly—headfirst! Then he’s on his bottom again and then, his belly. Oh no! Now it’s tumble, tumble, tumble, tumble, tumble, slide, slide, slide and tumble, tumble, tumble, head over tail, head over tail!
“Ooooooh, this dog wishes he would get to the bottom soon and get there IN ONE PIECE!”
In a flash, after all that sliding and tumbling, he’s at the bottom—dizzy and dirty but at the bottom at last—all IN ONE PIECE!
Heinz races for the shore. He sees the frog. “Here I come, frog!” SPLASH—he’s in the water paddling toward the big frog. “Oh, how this little dog wishes he was a very fast swimmer,” says Heinz as he accidentally gulps in a little of the Ohio River.
Pittsburgh Dog & Frog_8 pages from bookThis excerpt is published here courtesy of the author and should not be reprinted without permission.
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