Sofia, a girl with two moms, tells readers about the misadventures of her dog, Tolita, in a story where the queerness of the family is incidental to the tale.
Sofia’s moms say their dog Tolita is special, but Sofia thinks that they really mean she’s “a bad dog.” Tolita is always getting into trouble—digging in the trash, jumping on the furniture, and barking at other dogs out the window. She was even kicked out of obedience school!
One day, the family decides to go for a walk without Tolita, Sofia explains that Tolita gets nervous when she’s left alone, because “she was given up three times before we rescued her.” (This line might be triggering for some children who have been in multiple foster placements; others might be soothed by the loving, stable home that Tolita now finds herself in.) The family treats Tolita kindly, giving her a treat before they go out, and shutting doors to other rooms so she can’t get into trouble.
Alas, Tolita gets into trouble regardless, but there’s no real harm done, and the moms laugh it off. At the end of the day, mischievous, high-energy Tolita snuggles down with Sofia at bedtime, and we see that although Tolita may be “bad” at times, she’s also a dog who both gives and receives love, and is special to the family she’s in.
This slice-of-life story from a small press was written by a two-mom couple and based on their own daughter Sofia and dog Tolita. My one small criticism is in the “About the Authors” section at the end, where the authors speak of the real Tolita as “a crazy Jack Russell Terrier mix.” Given that the book is about Tolita’s sometimes erratic behavior, the use of the word “crazy,” an offensive term in reference to mental health, would have been better left out. Since it’s not in the main story, however, adult readers can decide if the rest of this otherwise sweet tale for animal lovers feels right for their family.
