Mark P. Vogley DDS

I am a general dentist and father of three teenage boys. Through real-life experience, my wife and I know first-hand how hard it is to motivate our boys to brush and floss!

Very early in my career as a dentist, I presented a simple story to my children patients that helped them understand the TRUTH on how dental cavities are formed. After they heard my explanation, they were totally grossed out! The funny thing that I learned was that the parents didn't know how cavities were formed and often asked "Is that true?" At which point, I would always confidently respond, "100%, the truth!" I also learned from parent feedback, that after I presented my story, the children who heard it became better brushers and flossers! After they understood how cavities form, they didn't want "Tooth Poop" on their teeth!

Here is the story of how "Tooth Poop" came to be:

In 1997, I met a cartoonist named Jenny Campbell at a local high school career's day. At the time, Jenny had published several children's books and was working for "Highlights" magazine. Believe it not, they put a dentist in the same classroom as a cartoonist! Who would want to hear about teeth and dentistry when there is a cartoonist in the room!!!?

After meeting Jenny, I wanted to pitch the idea that I had for a new children's book. I remember Jenny saying, "Do you know how many people have an idea for a children's book!?" I was persistent and asked her if we could discuss my idea over a coffee. She obliged and after hearing my story, agreed to help me make a draft copy of "Tooth Poop."

In 2010, we completed the draft copy of "Tooth Poop" and for about five years I sent many black and white copies to literary agents and publishers all over the United States. To no avail; no one wanted to publish "Tooth Poop."

In 2016, my friend Jenny was diagnosed with breast cancer. Jenny fought an amazing and brave battle and won! So in 2017, we sat down for another coffee and decided that it was time to finally publish "Tooth Poop." For about the next year, Jenny finalized the artwork and I finalized the grammar. In February of 2019, with the help of many friends, "Tooth Poop" was published with Kindle Direct Printing and it is now available all over the world on Amazon.com!

Moving forward, I am hopeful that "Tooth Poop" becomes hugely successful which will allow me to provide free copies of the book to low-income areas of the United States and World. I believe that if my book can educate children and their parents, then cavities can be prevented and dangerous and painful infections in areas where a tooth ache can persist for months without care can be avoided.

Recently, "La Popo en la Diente" which is the Spanish version of "Tooth Poop” was published and is available on Amazon.com. I have already started to purchase copies of this Spanish version and have sent them to third-world countries. I hope to teach Spanish speaking children around the world. They too can learn about "Tooth Poop" and the “Truth about Dental Cavities” in their native tongue.

I believe that my book can help in two ways: I believe that by reading my book, children will have an understanding of how cavities form and how they can be avoided. Secondarily, I will be able to use a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book to purchase additional books, tooth brushes, floss, and fluoride for low-income areas of the United States and World.

Side note: Danny, the main character of the book, does not like to brush and does not want to floss! Danny is based on a real person who was my patient as a child over twenty years ago!

Second side note: I dress up every February for Dental Health Month as a super hero named "Super Plaque Fighter!" I have been doing this for over twenty years and have visited over 10,000 children! The picture that you see on my author page is me dressed as "Super Plaque Fighter!"

Parents, grandparents and children all benefit from understanding "Tooth Poop." The book was written in kid-terms that are easy to follow and the last page of my book spells it all out in scientific terms. This is a true story and the scientific explanation brings it home for the adults that read it to their children! The fact remains, after parents, grandparents and children read "Tooth Poop," they become better brushers and flossers!

Thank you for taking an interest in me and how my children's book, "Tooth Poop" came to be. I'm excited about it and would love it if after you read it, you provide a review on Amazon.com. I would also love to hear your ideas on how I can better promote it in the future. You can reach me via my "Tooth Poop" Facebook page!