She encouraged me to dig out Hattie’s story – that it wasn’t just Fenway’s story – and of course she was so, so right. I can’t imagine anyone not connecting with Fenway! What was your revision process like for this book?īelieve it or not, I completely revised and resubmitted the manuscript to Marietta TWICE over a period of 11 months before I finally nailed it.

She really connected with the voice and totally got it. I found my agent Marietta Zacker by querying her through a form on her web site.

Only later did I realize that I am the Jack Russell! Without realizing it, I was processing my own feelings about the move by living through my character as I wrote the first draft.Īw! Well moving is stressful. From that first moment of inspiration, Fenway was a Jack Russell (my dog is NOT a Jack Russell). This was the initial inspiration for the character of Fenway, as well as the premise of the story. He was terrified that we were going to leave him behind. When my family was in the throes of a big move, our dog really freaked out. using the delightful perspective of a Jack Russell)? How did you come up with the idea for your novel (i.e. You can find her at, on twitter and instagram, or at goodreads. She lives with her family in a one hundred year old schoolhouse just outside of Boston. True to her first loves, she now also writes stories for children in the voice of a dog named Fenway. She went on to major in math, graduate from business school, and work at various non-profits trying to save the world – a goal that has eluded her (so far). Coe, a member of the Sweet Sixteener debut-author group, grew up a huge fan of books, dogs, and the Boston Red Sox. His friends in the Dog Park next door say Hattie is outgrowing him, but that can’t be right. Rather than playing with Fenway, she seems more interested in her new short human friend, Angel, and learning to play baseball. He’s pretty pleased with the huge Dog Park behind his new home, but he’s not so happy about the Evil Squirrels that taunt him from the trees, the super-slippery Wicked Floor in the Eating Room, and the changes that have come over Hattie lately. He lives in the city with Food Lady, Fetch Man, and-of course-his beloved short human and best-friend-in-the-world, Hattie. But when his family moves to the suburbs, Fenway faces a world of changes. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers.įenway is an excitable and endlessly energetic Jack Russell terrier. Coe recently talked about Coe’s middle-grade novel debut, which was just published by G.P.

Fenway hattie