“Dogs of Woofstock”, Kip Cosson”s seventh and latest book, begins in an Enchanted Mini Forest where two dogs, Johnnie Bosco and Vinnie Mayu, conjure up their next big adventure of having a music festival - “Woofstock for Dogs”, to be held in the Town of Bethel, NY.

After Bethel Town Clerk “Pinky Rita” grants a permit, they advertise by raising one leg over parking meters, rocks, bushes, and garbage cans throughout the county.

“Soon every dog can smell and sniff the music scoop in every state of the nation.” The news travels to seven continents; “dogs follow their noses to New York”; and as the story unfolds with colorful depictions of dogs aboard buses, planes, trains, and cars, the pulse of going to the Woofstock Festival picks up. 

Recapturing the spirit of the actual 1969 event, artists including Itchie Havens, Tim Barkin, Joe Cocker Spaniel, The Grateful Dogs, and Bone Baez perform as cows listen in the fields.

Individual dogs are depicted in expressive detail, and many characters are parodies of local townspeople and their pets. The book is dedicated to actual rescue dogs Johnnie Bosco and Mayu, who are pets of the author and his neighbor, as there are many homeless and sheltered dogs who need care.

Cosson began writing children’s books in 2005 as an extension of designing  silkscreened T-shirts that he began selling in NYC in 1991. He had been employed as an interior designer, serving commercial and individual clients of an architect, and through contacts was asked to illustrate a story written by someone else. Although a publication didn’t materialize, the experience planted a seed in discovering his talents as a writer.

His three best sellers are “Dogs of Woofstock”, “Ned Visits New York” (his first book), and “NYC, A to Z”, for which he won first prize at the NY Book Festival in 2015. In 2020, he won the prize again for “NYC Counting 1 to 20”.

After writing “Meece for Mayor”, about a cheese-eating mouse who is elected Mayor of NYC, he sent the book to mayors across the country for review. Randomly wondering whether there existed a place called “Cheeseville”, he discovered a “Cheeseville, CA”, a town of 10 families, and sent the mayor a book. After receiving it and conversing with Kip, 93-year-old Mayor Eb Whipple made a wish to meet him. The townspeople raised funds for Kips’ ticket and they got together and arranged a book signing event in Cheeseville.

Later, Kip created a new character for the book “NY Cow Pow Wow” based on Mayor Eb Whipple’s personae named Blue Bear. In the book there is a milk strike by cows and both Blue Bear and Mayor Meece Mouse join together to settle the strike.

Another book, “Ned & Meece, Wheels of New York”, depicts sights of New York in six languages: French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, German and English. Translations were provided by the faculty of NYU and Columbia University. 

Originally from Austin, Texas, Cosson graduated from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas in 1984 with a BFA in Interior Design. He arrived in NYC in1986 and lives in the West Village, as well as at his home on Horseshoe Lake since 2008. He frequently visits his 90 year-old aunt in Coleman, Texas, an enthusiastic fan that arranges book signings. Cosson spends time in Oslo, Norway as well.

His next book signing/reading is scheduled on Sunday, July 20 at 11am at the Woodstock Way in Bethel.

Books and T-shirts are available online at www.KipKids.com. Kip Cosson can be reached at KipKids@aol.com.