I had the pleasure of meeting a Canadian author while attending MeFest in Waterloo, Ontario. Didi LeMay is the delightful author of children's books, one of which is A Winter Solstice Celebration. I found myself intrigued about this cautionary fairy tale. The animal characters in the story warn the children to take care of their environment or the earth will suffer dire consequences. This book would be a great read for children and parents who wish to be more environmentally conscience. Teachers might also recognize that this book would make an excellent part of their curriculum. Below is a Q & A with Didi LeMay.
1. The title of your book is “A Winter Solstice Celebration”. What does the title mean?
The activities and actions of the animals–their stand takes place in the forest and also takes place in and around the Solstice festival. I wanted to include all people of the world and also feel a connection with the earth, as the solstice is a celebration as old as time and connects us all–humans and animals–with the earth.
2. I see you have a new book that will be published soon. Tell us about it.
The next book to be published is called: “Freddy’s French Fries Fiasco”.The book is about a young sparrow, Freddy. He has been introduced to French Fries and enjoys eating a lot of them. He gets too chubby, and because of this he cannot fly anymore. He is very sad and his three friends, Alfie, Jeanie, and Robby, are very helpful. They help Freddy build an exercise track to lose his chubby belly. During this time, they have lots of adventures. With this story, I want to emphasize the importance of good health and also the importance of good friends and strong friendships.
3. At what age did you discover writing, and when were you first published? Tell us your
call story.
As far back as I can remember, writing and reading were my passion. In grade 4 we had a competition for how many books we had read. In June of that year we were to present our list. I presented 23 books. The teacher told me that I had misunderstood her and that my list represented the ones I wanted to read, not the ones I had read. When I told her I had read them, she did not believe me. It took a visit from my father to the teacher, to set her straight. In the same grade, we started to learn to write stories. One time, I wrote a story about a girl who woke up in the middle of the night because she heard a noise. I wrote that the curtains were left open and the light of the streetlamp fell onto the alarm clock and she could see the time. When I got the story back from the teacher, she failed me because I could not possibly have been the writer of this, because of the details of that section. Of course I was not angry. As a matter of fact, I was thrilled. That is when I knew I was meant to be a writer. I had it in my blood!
Grade 7, the teacher would punish us by having us write short stories. One day I had to write a story and I wrote about how the teacher was soooo mad, that I could see the smoke coming out of his ears. He was not impressed with my description of him.
I first published a book of a collection of short stories when I was in grade 7. It was my first attempt at self-publishing. I typed it out, and when someone wanted my book, I would go to the typewriter and re-type it for them from the master.
4. Tell us about “A Winter Solstice Celebration”.
A Winter Solstice Celebration is an excellent book for adults who want to teach their childrenthe importance of caring for animals and the environment they live in. Her book makes great Christmas Reading.
A Winter Solstice Celebration is available on my own web-site: www.didilemay.com and a variety of on-line bookstores such as:
chapters.indigo.ca, amazon.ca, amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, and ecampus.com
The book is also featured on a Polish on-line book store as well as on Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Japanese and German on-line book stores.
5. How do you pick the characters’ names?
When I develop a story, I percolate a while. I let the story develop on its own and let it speak to me. This character needed a name, so I talked to her and asked her, “What is your name?” One day, I was playing on the Internet and saw the Japanese name Miya– meaning temple. “I knew,” she told me, “when I saw the name it belonged to my character.” The fact that it means temple in Japanese is interesting, as it follows the theme of earthiness.
6. I hear that “A Winter Solstice Celebration” addresses concerns about the
environment. Tell me more about this.
Years before I wrote this story, while in school, I had to pass over a bridge with a small river flowing under it. That river was always filthy with chemical runoff from a factory near by. It bothered me and I started to learn about the environment and what we could do to keep it all clean. One day, I thought about the animals and I wondered about what they would say, if they could talk. I put myself in their shoes.
7. Describe your writing in three words.
Descriptive, animated, attention-grabbing.
8. Why did you write this book?
Once I put myself in the shoes of the animals I felt I needed to tell their story. I also wanted to communicate that we can co-exist together and that we should be a bit more conscious of what we, as humans, do to our environment.
9. Who is your intended audience?\
The story is for everyone who wants to read it. I feel it has a universal appeal, as it tells a story that is interesting to all of us, young and old.
10. How does this book benefit the reader?
I feel that once the reader has read the book “A Winter Solstice Celebration”, they would be more aware of the environment. I feel it could benefit all of us, as the story told is one that, hopefully, gets people thinking more of the footprint they set upon our earth.
Didi LeMay
Didi LeMay lives in Toronto with her husband and cat Harley and dog Rosie. Didi teaches English as a Second Language. For more information on Didi LeMay and her books check out her website, an excerpt in her blog and listen to her on Blog Talk Radio. You can Like A Winter's Solstice on Facebook and follow Didi on Twitter: @Nozum If you visit Didi LeMay's website, you can enter a contest to win an iPod Shuffle. Entries will be accepted until December 19th, 2010.
BOOKALICIOUS BOOK GRAB GIVEAWAY
I have a signed copy of Didi LeMay's book "A Winter Solstice Celebration" to give to a lucky Bookalicious reader who answers the question, "How do you and your children help save the planet?"
Yummy Rules and Regulations
You must be a Yummy Mummy Club member to win. Click to sign up! It's free and filled with perks. One comment per member. Entries accepted until Sunday December 19th, 2010. Contest open to Canadian residents only. Winners will be picked using www.random.org.
Good luck!
Relish reading,
Wanda Lynne Young
Bookalicious: Newsletter
Twitter: @YMCbookalicious
Facebook: wanda.lynne.young
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