Ciao, Sandro!

Follow the adventures of a lovable Venetian dog as he explores the streets and canals of his beloved city on a special mission Meet Sandro! As the loyal first mate to gondolier Nicola, Sandro knows everything about his home, the beautiful city of Venice. Sandro and Nicola go everywhere together. But today, Sandro is venturing out on his own for the first time. He is on a very important secret mission! What is Sandro up to? And what friends will he meet along the way? This charming story from Steven Varni and Luciano Lozano follows a dog-about-town (based on a real canine!) on a journey to a heartwarming surprise-teaching young readers all about Venice as he goes! The backmatter includes a glossary of Italian words and a pronunciation guide. Steven Varni was born and raised in California, then spent years in New York City working in bookstores and writing and editing articles and books for adults. Since 2010 he has lived with his family in Venice, Italy, where he meets all kinds of people and animals-including a gondolier's loyal little dog who really does know how to take vaporetti around the lagoon by himself. Luciano Lozano was born in Spain the same year man traveled to the Moon. That may be the reason why he has traveled a lot since childhood. Self-taught, he has been working as an illustrator since 2007 and has collaborated with worldwide publishers and magazines, as well as written and illustrated a number of picture books. His illustrations reflect his strong sense of color and texture, his frequent use of traditional techniques, and an undercurrent of subtle humor. He currently lives in Barcelona.