Phase one of the book project is out!

I've mentioned on here before that Duane is an artist.  Well, we decided that her talent could be put to good use by creating watercolor drawings for a Kindle version of a book that I was currently recording.  The Tale of Chirpy Cricket by Arthur Scott Bailey was originally published in 1920.  I had wanted to narrate some of his work because they're terrific books for kids.  Bailey never talked down to kids and managed to slip in some actual science and nature facts while still creating likable characters.

Duane got to work and the new edition with her watercolor drawings is now on sale on Amazon!   There are over 30 illustrations of the various characters now sprinkled throughout the book.  She decided that she wanted to make them less 'cartoon-like' and more realistic (with a bit of whimsy thrown in here and there) so that children could even use the drawings to help identify the crickets and other critters from the story in 'real-life.'  Here's the cover featuring, of course, Chirpy!
 

 

I hope to have the audio version up soon and have it in the Whispersync program with our Kindle version.  I love the idea of immersion reading for children -- particularly those still learning or possibly struggling with reading.   Duane's book can be purchased here on Amazon.  Once the audio version becomes available, it will be heavily discounted if you purchase or have purchased this Kindle version.  I'll leave it for now with another character from Duane's drawings.  Meet Kiddie Katydid!