The Tales of Taz- Book#1
Page One:
Taz loved to play ball, eat treats and spend time with his "Diddy," but there was one thing he was very, very afraid of-getting a haircut.
Page Two:
Each time Taz went to get a haircut at the "Precious Pets Salon," the big dogs made fun of him because he was so small.
"Look at the little guy!" laughed one dog. "Yeah, the only thing you can see is hair!" yelled another.
Taz felt very sad by the mean things the dogs said to him. "I don't get it," he thought.
Page Three:
The bulldog in the cage next to Taz even tried to bite him. "We don't like LITTLE guys," growled the bulldog.
Taz moved to the back of his cage. He knew to stay away from anyone who tried to bite him.
Page Four:
Suddenly, Taz heard a rattle at his cage door. It was Ms. Tanya, the groomer! He ran to the front of his cage and jumped into Ms. Tanya's arms. He wagged his tail wildly as they headed for the doggy shower.
Page Five:
Taz loved the doggy shower. He would dance in the water on his hind legs then scoop the bubbles up in his paws and blow them at Ms. Tanya while she sprayed him with water.
Page SIx:
When Ms. Tanya dried Taz, he was very fluffy. "Taz, God made you so beautiful and you're going to look very handsome when I'm done working on you," she said.
"That's a lot like God," thought Taz. "We'll all be beautiful when God is done working on us."
Page Seven:
Taz certainly was handsome after his haircut and all the workers at the "Precious Pets Salon" thought so too.
"He's the most beautiful dog I've ever seen," said the workers as they admired Taz.
Taz held his head high and smiled as Ms. Tanya tied a special bandana around his neck and placed him back in the cage.
Page Eight:
Suddenly, Taz noticed all the big dogs smiling at him.
"Hey Taz, I like your haircut," said one of the dogs. Another yelled, "Yeah, me too. I want my hair to look just like yours. I want everyone to tell me how handsome I am."
"I like it!" thought Taz. He thanked the dogs for their kind words and said, "Remember, God made us all different. Your hair may not look like mine, but it will look very special because it's yours."
Page Nine:
One by one, Ms. Tanya grave the dogs a bath and cut their hair. The dogs felt very loved as the workers at the "Precious Pets Salon" told each of them how beautiful they looked.
Page Ten:
There was one dog, however, who did not feel loved. "I don't like this place and I don't care how I look," growled Bully the bulldog. Bully refused to let Ms. Tanya groom him and even snapped at her when she reached into his cage. Frightened, Ms. Tanya called Bully's owner to come and pick him up from the salon.
Page Eleven:
Taz felt sorry for Ms. Tanya. She was only trying to help. He also felt sorry for Bully.
Page Twelve:
One by one, the owners came to pick up their dog. Soon, it was just Bully and Taz.
Page Thirteen:
When Bully's owner walked into the salon, she looked inside his cage and screamed, "You look terrible! Who would ever want YOU? I don't." She slammed his cage door shut and left the salon.
Bully hung his head, and cried. "See, no one wants me."
Page Fourteen:
"Bulldog, God loves you, and He wants you to know that others love you too," whispered Taz to the bulldog.
"No they don't," said Bully. "Look at me. I'm ugly, and even my owner doesn't want me."
"But God thinks you're very special," said Taz. "He loves you for who you are on the inside, not for what you look like on the outside."
Page Fifteen:
The bulldog wiped a tear with his paw.
"Really?" said Bully.
"Really," said Taz.
At that moment, the door to the Precious Pets Salon opened and a blue eyed, blonde headed boy stood gazing at the dogs.
Page Sixteen:
"Look Dad!" the boy shouted with excitement. "I love bulldogs. Whoever owns that bulldog is really special."
Bully stood straight up in his cage and began barking and wagging his tail. He had always wanted a boy who thought he was special.
The boy walked to Bully's cage and put his hand through the bars. Bully licked him over and over.
"Oh, I wish he was mine," said the boy.
Page Seventeen:
Ms. Tanya walked in and heard the boy.
"He could be yours," said Ms. Tanya. "Would you like to take Bully home?"
The boys eyes lit up. "Dad, dad, can we, oh PLEASE dad!"
As Ms. Tanya explained how Bully's owner had left him at the salon, the boy's dad realized the bulldog needed a very special family. He turned to the boy with a smile on his face and said, "If you want him, he's yours."
Page Eighteen:
Bully bounced against the front of the cage as the boy reached in to get him. He licked the boy's face over and over as the boy giggled with joy.
Suddenly, the bulldog realized-he never let Ms. Tanya give him a bath! The little boy didn't even seem to notice. He loved the bulldog just the way he was.
Page Nineteen:
As Bully the bulldog walked away, he turned toward Taz's cage. WIth a soft whisper he said, "Thanks Taz. You may be little on the outside, but you're very big on the inside. You taught me that God loves me just for who I am. Now, I can love others too."
Taz smiled and waved as Bully walked out the door with his new family.
Page Twenty:
As Taz sat alone in his cage, he smiled as he thought about his day at the salon.
Suddenly, the door to the salon swung open. Taz saw Diddy walking toward his cage with his favorite toy--a new ball.
Excited, Taz jumped into his Diddy's arms, where he always felt safe.
"It's been a busy day," thought Taz. "C'mon Diddy. Let's go home!"
-Page in back of book with suggestions/tips on how to talk with your children about bullying
-List of reputable websites in back that pertain to bullying
-Additional book suggestions dealing with bullying (listed as age appropriate)
-Ten questions in back listed from easiest to hardest so that all ages are addressed…Questions are “Refer to Text” questions-find text in the story to prove your answers for older. Questions will also require that specific aspects of bullying be discussed that occurred in the story. Example: Bullies are often jealous. What does the word jealous mean? Where in the story was someone jealous? For younger kids-Where in the story was someone mean to Taz? Why do you think they were mean to him? What would you do in Taz’ situation? (Instead of questions being bullets, they will be tails)
-Have a “Research Shows” page for parents. This page will list reasons that bullies bully. Includes questions for parents to ask kids to find out if they are being bullied