Bob the Railway Dog in the Sydney Morning Herald

‘Bob the Railway Dog’, published by Black Dog Books, an imprint of Walker Books Australia and illustrated by the wonderful Andrew McLean, was released in August last year and launched at the Railfan Bookshop across from the Mont Albert train station in Victoria on 1st August and again on 23rd August at the National Railway Museum in Adelaide.

I literally tripped over Bob’s story (by spotting a photo of him) as I was running through Adelaide Railway Station on my way to the National Railway Museum at Port Adelaide to research another book. I was in Adelaide on a May Gibbs Creative Time Fellowship and this was 2008! I often mention that picture books take time – even the book I was originally researching doesn’t come out until next year.

Since the launches in August and children’s book week, good old Bob was forced to step back a bit to allow a certain much smaller canine to take the limelight in the Myer Christmas Windows (Little Dog and the Christmas Wish) which is why I was surprised and excited to find that on Saturday ‘Bob the Railway Dog’ received a wonderful review in the Sydney Morning Herald along with other non-fiction picture books.

“Bob the Railway Dog is a well-told historically based story that will particularly appeal to dog and train enthusiasts. It is a great way of showing children that our history abounds with amazing stories that can stir the heart and engage the mind.” Dr Reeder

Here’s the link:

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/book-reviews-childrens-picture-books-20160209-gmo1y9.html