Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Book birthday and a review

Sprout Street Neighbors: Five Stories is out today- happy birthday little book! To celebrate I am posting my favorite review so far. The Winnie the Pooh comparison really made my day. Thanks Booklist!

"The five stories here present a tribute to the ups and downs of friendship. Differences are the central focus of each story as characters display their very diverse personalities. Poetry-loving Henry fancies peace and quiet; vivacious Emma is always ready to party; creative Violet wants to practice her flute and knit; gardener Wilbur prefers to work with plants and dig in the dirt; and shy Fernando’s secret desire is to dance. These animal friends reside in the same apartment building, but sometimes their different lifestyles make being neighbors hard! Episodic chapters reveal how problems, such as a noisy acorn collection, leaky ceilings, and a birthday cake disaster, find resolution in a fashion reminiscent of Winnie the Pooh’s misadventures in the Hundred Acre Woods. Soft, expressive pen-and-ink illustrations provide assistance for the transitional reader. Demonstrating tolerance, politeness, and teamwork, these gentle stories help show how the world can work when challenges are approached with kindness and understanding."

— Martha Edmundson, Booklist

ps. If you would like to purchase a personalized copy of the book, my lovely local indie The Odyssey Bookshop would be happy to help! Just order the book here and note who you would like it inscribed to in the comments when checking out. I'll go in and sign it, then they'll ship it directly to you.

Monday, April 13, 2015

First book!

It is hard to describe the feeling of holding your book for the first time, after all the many weeks, months, and years spent bringing it into being. When a little package arrived on my doorstep last week, I was excited to open it, but also nervous that it might not live up to my expectations. Would all the pieces that we had labored over for so long come together and create a solid little vessel for the story inside? When I opened up Sprout Street and flipped through the pages my heart leapt up. All the details blended seamlessly together to form one little book, five little stories, one hundred and four little pages. 


My favorite details, both surprises, are the sweet little embossed sprouts on the cover and the marvelous full color printed endpapers.



I am so excited to share this book with the world!