The Childornot Tales

The Childornot Tales were written for the imagination, are told in the music of rhythm and rhyme, and meant for the child in all of us. Three imaginative tales make up the book: The Heliotrope Fly With The Suction-Cup Feet; Nothing To Fear Could Be Lurking Quite Near; and Some Swell Mutant Ants Holding Hands As They Danced. These tales actually originated as improv-storytelling on the family front porch more than half a century ago. The author would tell story after story of silliness to her younger sister. Together they shared a great deal of laughter, bonding, and love. But until now, the stories were never written down. Here, Marti Healy has added the attraction of whimsical rhyme in the telling of them. The tales all feature a range of characters all different, all intriguing, all asking the reader to involve their theater of the mind for maximum effect. The hand-crafted original illustrations help set the stage in an off-beat, almost steam-punk style. The first story, about the Heliotrope Fly, focuses on a smartypants character who eventually gets her comeuppance - suggesting it's better to simply be nice. The second tale reminds us what it s like to be told by our elders that we have nothing to fear and to run off to bed ... down that long dark hallway ... into that empty room ... when we know all too well that Nothing to Fear Could Be Lurking Quite Near under the bed or in the back of the closet. So the lesson here is to be brave - because what is nothing to fear after all? Perhaps we have also experienced what it s like to be thought too tall or too short or too fat or too thin or too this or too that to be friends with all the others. The third tale shows how Some Swell Mutant Ants Holding Hands As They Danced know quite a bit about diversity. And to be different can be quite fun in the end. Each of these stories is meant to entertain ... and to deliver a tiny, albeit important, life lesson without actually being caught at it. All of the tales begin with a highly visual, rather improbably, multi-layered illustration to set the stage for the story to follow. Each fills the mind with possibilities. Within the story, bits and pieces of the artwork are utilized to further the story line, but leave the rest up to the reader to imagine at will. The Childornot Tales will charm and engage a variety of audiences and generations.