My former co-worker Rebecca Thompson has illustrated two charming children’s books. Both books were written by Kirstin Dias.

C is for Camp

The first book, published in 2021, is called “C is for Camp”. It’s an alphabet book that describes the journey of a family of bears to their cottage, or “camp”, in the woods. It is utterly charming and makes me intensely miss going to the cottage. Running off the end of the dock into the lake… the way the waves sorted the beautiful multicoloured sand of the beach… the smell of the woods… I miss it intensely.

But I was thinking… we always called it ‘the cottage’, not ‘camp’. To me, a ‘camp’ is an organized thing for public-school students. However, my sister lives in Sault Ste. Marie and calls it ‘camp’. Imagine my joy when I saw that Kirsten Dias, the author of “C is for Camp”, is from Sault Ste. Marie!

Rebecca Thompson’s illustrations bring back the beauty and joy of the cottage. The bears go swimming and have a cookout. Constellations gleam in the night sky after a beautiful sunset. Butterflies and bees make their way cheerfully through the book.

Kindness Pie

The second book is called “Kindness Pie”. It’s a little shorter, but just as sweet. It takes us to a warm kitchen full of a mother’s love, where the little bears are being instructed how to bake a pie. But not just any pie… this is a kindness pie, overflowing with friendliness and fun.

Rebecca Thompson’s illustrations again bring us into the charming world of the bear family, as they make the pie. And the bees and butterflies are back.

An article in the Soo Today describing Kirsten and her books:

https://www.sootoday.com/membership/features/sault-author-releases-first-childrens-book-4307070

The books are available from retailers in the Sault Ste Marie area, from her website Bow and Bear Co, and from online retailers such as Amazon.