Stanza is a poetry loving dog. He writes his own poetry, but he hides it from his brothers because he is supposed to be a street tough just like them. He is sure they would make fun of him and make him miserable if he told. One day he enters a poetry contest. This lets the cat out of the bag and sure enough the brothers begin to make fun of him...until they see what the prize is that Stanza wins. They want a share, but Stanza will only share if they let him be the poet he wants to be and they let themselves be the artists they are meant to be. Their lives are never the same.

As a parent of two artistic boys, I can relate to this story. It is often hard being artistic when those around you have different expectations. This story has a good message about sticking to your art even in the worst circumstances.

This book has an added bonus. It teaches the terminology of poetry such as stanza and haiku.

The illustrations of Jack Davis are larger than life, colorful and interesting.