There was a French bulldog named Henri who taught Samantha Childs a lot about love. For years she had dreamed of a pet of this breed, so when her parents gave her one for her 30th birthday, she was thrilled. He not only taught her about the love between a dog and a human, but he helped her better understand the love of self and others.
“I had no idea what I was doing, and I also had no idea my heart could feel so much love. I could literally feel it in my chest, and it just kept growing,” Childs says. In 2015, she came up with the idea of writing a children’s book about bullying, using her own experience of childhood bullying, but told through the prism of a community of dogs centered around Henri (who was a bit of a celebrity in real life, with 67,000 people). followers on Instagram, @henrilefrenchie). “Henri and the Magnificent Snort”, which will be released Tuesday, June 27, follows the pup on his journey from shame for his sniffle to self-love and acceptance.
“The way he embraced life was my inspiration. He was my hero, and when people said he was who he was because of me, I felt so honored that they thought that, but I think he was who he was because he was. is exactly how it was. I was so lucky to be his mum,” she says of Henri, who died in 2018 (Childs was recently handed down a judgment in a negligence lawsuit she filed against a local veterinarian following Henri’s death).
Childs, 43, is a writer living in Solana Beach, where she grew up spending hours with her sister in the children’s section of their parents’ independent bookstore. She took the time to talk about her book, why she chose to focus on bullying, and her beloved Henri.
Question : What was the inspiration for this story?
A: “Henry and the Magnificent Snort” is based on a mixture of two true stories. The first is Henry’s story – his unique personality and characteristics, as well as his life in San Diego and New York. The second story is my own personal story from my childhood and my bullying experiences. I was bullied when I entered a new school for college. Like Henri in the book, I was insulted, chanted, interrupted by my old friends and I felt so alone. For me, it lasted a year and a half, then I left school. And like Henri in the book, after everything I had been through, I was shocked in the future when people wanted to be my friend. For so long I believed that something was wrong with me that people were treating me this way. In the book, I tell what happened to me and what I felt through Henri and his experiences with other dogs.
Question : Why did you want to specifically address bullying?
A: Bullying and kindness are very interesting, important and always relevant topics. Through the lens of a bullied French Bulldog and this book, I wanted to explore the beauty of our differences, how we all belong, and how kind we all are. I think these ideas are very important both for how we perceive and treat others, but also for how we perceive and treat ourselves. Bullying can take many forms throughout our lives, both as children and as adults, both outside and inside our own minds. And why in the form of a children’s book?
There is something very powerful about children’s books. When you grow up with a book, the story becomes part of you and how you see the world. I want this story to reach children and help them. The messages in the book are the ones I needed to hear when I was young and being bullied. These are messages I need to hear today. I still love reading children’s books now, as an adult too. There is magic and depth in the form. Children’s books can deliver a message very quickly and in a way that sticks in your mind.
What I love about Solana Beach…
I love how beautiful it is, how walkable it is and how it feels like a small town in the middle of a big city. I love the magic of its beaches and lagoons, and how in five minutes all your worries seem less important. I like that it’s laid back and filled with nice locals and has the same sign and dandelion statue that was there when I was a kid and lived there in the 80s. I like the fact may it be artistic and may people decorate their yard and home with all kinds of eclectic delights, and may it be full of fun places to explore, eat, drink, shop and listen to live music, and may these fun places are filled. with both new and familiar smiley faces. It is a wonderful place to live.
Question : Can you talk a bit about Henry?
A: Henri had the most positive, optimistic, gentle and goofy personality. He was endlessly entertaining and endlessly adorable. He had the most moving and beautiful eyes. He would look at me and I would feel his love. He had a famous Frenchie howl and he did countless fun things. He sniffled when I talked to him. He sniffed people’s eyes. He crawled in army around the carpet. He was doing Frenchie zoomies (running in circles). He would sleep in the diamond of my bent legs.
Question : In the acknowledgments at the end of your book, you thank those who supported you during Henri’s death and your work to strengthen animal rights, related to Henri’s death (details of the negligence suit have been documented on your GoFundMe page to build a legal fund for the case). What role did Henri’s death and the subsequent trial play in how you approached the story of “Henri and the Magnificent Snort”?
A: Henri’s death and the trial that followed was one of the hardest things I have ever experienced. When this happened, the rough story of “Henry and the Magnificent Snort” had already been written and most of the illustrations were complete. However, for a long time I didn’t know if I was going to publish the book. When I wrote the book, I also thought that Henri would be with me during my readings and signing sessions. I was also very grappling with my grief and at the same time dealing with the trauma of taking legal action and doing what I hoped would protect other animals from Henry’s fate. Interestingly, sometimes the words in my book helped me move on. I remember that at a difficult time in the trial, I had read the draft of the book on Henri on his platform and read the words I had previously written: “He was going to organize a rally to share what was true and to help others to benefit. everything he had been through,” and I thought my life was now like the book and now it was me, defending Henry and the other animals. So, I kept moving forward and eventually I kept moving forward with the book too.
Question : What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
A: “Don’t worry about what other people think.” It’s so fundamental and so important, and yet I’m continually relearning. I recently reflected on how people’s thoughts and opinions are fluid, including my own, and are based on a limited and biased perspective that says more about the individual and what they are going through than on what he saw. judge. Perspectives change too, so to live trying to please others is to try to live in a world that doesn’t exist. You just torture yourself for no reason. You worry about something you made up in your own head. You never really know what someone else is thinking, and regardless, thoughts change. My own thoughts, opinions and perspectives change. We are all constantly growing. Never mind.
Question : What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?
A: I am allergic to dogs. Before having Henri, I went to an allergy clinic because I wanted injections to help me get a French bulldog, which had been my dream for years. They told me they had to do an allergy test on me first, and they pricked me with a lot of things (I think, mainly different trees and pollens). I started to swell up so much that they panicked and gave me an emergency injection and a spike pen and quickly sent me home. They never treated me for my dog allergy. I still had Henri and I was not allergic to him. It was fate.
Question : Please describe your ideal weekend in San Diego.
A: There are so many perfect weekends in San Diego! If I imagine one, it would be spending time lying on the beach with good friends, a good book and a newspaper; boogie boarding under warm, sunny skies; go hiking; spending time with family; make art; going out to eat and drink, maybe stop by one of my new favorite spots, Local Roots in Solana Beach; and dance and listen to great music at Belly Up.