WINNER of the 2026 NB Book Awards: Mrs. Dunster’s Award for Fiction
Puppet
Robert Stutt
The low-budget world of childrens TV is an arcane, funny, sometimes profane one but, for the moment, amiable puppeteer, James Tait, sits at its top. His show, “Beaver Tales” is a hit, and his puppet, Benny Beaver, is becoming a star.
It was not always so. From slinging dead cow heads at the lion park, to juggling with Russian killers, Jim’s puppetry career has been varied rather than profitable. Yet somehow he’s created a good life for himself, his wife and young daughter, and now, at last, his big break is here. At least until the police arrive on set, and remove Benny in a plastic bag.
Jim Tait’s contented family life is about to be swallowed whole by scandal, blackmail and murder, because there is a dark secret underlying Benny and the show, a secret that forces Jim to reassess his past and future, a secret that threatens his family and leads deep into the frigid backwoods of Quebec where Benny must finally make his stand.
Winner of the 2026 Mrs. Dunsters Award for Fiction
Trade Paperback 264 pages
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Robert Stutt
Puppet
Robert (Bob) Stutt has worked in children’s television for over 40 years, puppeteering on such shows as Fraggle Rock, The Jim Henson Hour, The Friendly Giant, The Big Comfy Couch, Sesame Park, and as Iggy Iguana on Under the Umbrella Tree. He’s also written over 300 scripts produced for CBC, CTV, PBS, and Disney, and has performed live everywhere form the street corners of Toronto to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington. Bob lives in Fredericton, NB, with his wife, Joanna, dog, Teddy, and ginger cat, Conan O’Brien.