“You were so good at sitting,” Mason said to him. “You’re a good dog.”
Mrs. McMurray tapped on the microphone and said, “Boys and girls, we do have one more important announcement.”
Everyone quieted down to hear what it was.
“Under the circumstances,” she said, “we felt that Cheerio Zipzer handled himself extremely well. Even though Fang didn’t keep his teeth to himself, Cheerio was respectful and restrained. He did not engage in a fight, and he showed consideration of another dog’s feelings. As a result, we would like to confer on him the special award of Mr. Congeniality.”
Mason shot up like a jack-in-the-box and started to yell, with his arms waving in the air.
“Cheerio is the best!” he chanted. “Cheerio is the best!”
Suddenly, he stopped yelling.
“What’s Mr. Congeniality?” he said to Frankie.
“It means Cheerio is the friendliest, sweetest, nicest pet in the contest,” Frankie said.
“Oh,” Mason said. “Why didn’t they just say that?”
Then he started jumping up and down again, yelling, “Cheerio is the best! Cheerio is the best!”
I couldn’t resist. I ran out of the stands, charged up to Team Cheerio, and we all high-fived one another. We had to bend down a little so Mason could get in on the high-fiving.
And on his own, Cheerio walked right up to Katherine and gave her a big, wet lick right across her snout.
The thing is, when you kiss an iguana, there are a lot of scales involved, and Cheerio did spend the next ten minutes spitting them out. But he didn’t seem to mind. He just yipped and yapped and wagged his tail and licked everything that didn’t lick him first.
He was one happy dog.
I guess that’s the way it goes when you’re Mr. Congeniality.
About the Authors
HENRY WINKLER is an actor, producer, director, coauthor, public speaker, husband, father, brother, uncle, and godfather. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Stacey. They have three children named Jed, Zoe, and Max, and three dogs named Monty, Charlotte, and Linus. He is so proud of the Hank Zipzer series that he could scream—which he does sometimes, in his backyard!
If you gave him two words to describe how he feels about the Hank Zipzer series, he would say: “I am thrilled that Lin Oliver is my partner and we write all these books together.” Yes, you’re right, that was sixteen words. But, hey! He’s got learning challenges.
LIN OLIVER is a writer and producer of movies, books, and television series for children and families. She has created over one hundred episodes of television, four movies, and over twelve books. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Alan. They have three sons named Theo, Ollie, and Cole, and a very adorable but badly behaved puppy named Dexter.
If you gave her two words to describe this book, she would say “funny and compassionate.” If you asked her what compassionate meant, she would say “full of kindness.” She would not make you look it up in the dictionary.
A Tale of Two Tails Page 9
