“Busco” is a Children’s Book with a Message for Everyone

Robert Kowalski’s latest book, Busco, is a children’s story about the search for companionship and the discovery of friendship.

At the center of this tale is Busco, a mixed-colored puppy who gets lost after a storm passes through his town and damages the shelter where he lived. Lonely and scared, Busco goes on a quest for love, for community. And eventually, he finds Maggie, a young girl who is also seeking companionship. The kids at school aren’t very nice to her; they tease her and tell her she doesn’t belong.

Sometimes we feel like
no one can see us
and that no one loves us
or knows we are alive.

Maggie finds Busco and she takes him home. They form a bond instantly. Like a miracle, Maggie finally finds the love and value she’s been searching for at school—and Busco finds a home.

Busco is an ode to the power of human-dog relationships. Through Busco’s journey, Kowalski explores universal themes of fear, loneliness, and bravery. Then, when Maggie befriends him, the narrative celebrates companionship and friendship.

For Kowalski, dogs can bring the world together. No matter who you are, what color your skin is, or how much money you have, dogs provide unconditional love and loyalty. And that’s what he thinks we need more of, especially right now. Like his name in Spanish, “Busco”, we’re all ‘looking for’ that something important—and that something is probably love.

“We all know what it’s like to feel scared and we all know what it’s like to feel lonely at some point in our lives—young, middle-aged, old, it’s part of the human journey,” Kowalski says. “And then we find love. We find a companion. We find a dog—and they find us.”

Inspiration for the book struck him on a trip to Portugal with his wife. Kowalski was staying in an old castle in the city of Bussaco when he encountered a stray dog on the street one day. When the dog found him again the next day, and the next, he felt their little friendship was no coincidence. The dog trailed behind him and his wife as they explored the city, he fed him, and they formed a bond.

Somehow Busco knew that Maggie
was feeling lonely and lost too.
He just felt it, and sometimes
a small feeling is enough.

Upon departing Bussaco, Kowalski’s heart was softened. His travels were wholly transformed by this unexpected friendship to his new four-legged friend. When he returned to the United States, he used this experience to draw up the story of Busco and Maggie.

Author Robert Kowalski at the Los Angeles Book Fair

“In the world, the lights are dimming. There’s a lot of division and separation and fear. I want to throw a little love in the mix,” Kowalski goes on to say.

Since Busco’s release in 2022, Kowalski has used the children’s book as a tool to give back to the community. He had donated countless copies to schools, dog shelters, and children’s hospitals across the United States. If you’re a parent, a teacher, an auntie or uncle or doting abuelita, consider adding Busco to the shelf for the little ones.

Kowalski hopes to adapt the book into a film.