Back to Blogging: Reconnecting With Passions

I just spent a week in Mexico visiting with some of my husband's family. It was a wonderful chance to distance myself from my (too) many projects and gain some perspective. One of the most delightful events was actually getting my hands on a copy of our cousin, Ana Gerhard's lovely book Listen to the Birds.

Ana Gerhard's Delightful Intro to Classic Music

Ana is a talented musician. She created this introduction to classical music for children with great thought, imagination and delightful creativity. I am personally not a huge fan of classical music, but this book brings back memories of some of the lovely experiences I have had with the classics, including "Peter and the Wolf" and "The Magic Flute." I am so pleased that Ana's second book is progressing well and that Listen to the Birds, has already been translated from the original Spanish into English and several other languages.

If you have children, this will be a delightful shared experience for you. The CD works beautifully with the text and illustrations bringing the classics right in to your home and hour heart. You can find it for sale on Amazon, and may be able to find it, or order it through your local book store. Here you can see an interview with Ana about her upcoming book, The Secret Mountain.  

http://www.thesecretmountain.com/AnInterviewWithAuthorAnaGerhard

We saw a lot of birds whilesitting in the gardens in Cuernavaca and Tepoztlan, including several that were new to me. The rufous-backed robin and golden-cheeked woodpecker were two newbies. I also saw a gorgeous old friend: the vermillion flycatcher, which I first encountered in the Galapagos, and a charming hummingbird I can't ID from my Mexican bird book.

Rufous-backed Robin in Cuernavaca, Mexico

The robin looks very like our American Robin, but has a rusty back, and the breast is not so orange. The hummer probably is way more iridescent, but the light doesn't show it. I sat for hours on the patios in the two yards, watching and taking pictures, chatting and listening to conversations in Spanish and Catalan. Our hosts were somewhat amazed that I was so interested in the birds, but once I showed them the Peterson's Field Guide to Mexican Birds, and they saw how many birds there are in Mexico, they too, began to take more interest.

This is a part of the point of the children's book I am trying to get published. All these natural treasures, birds, butterflies, bees, beetles, trees and flowers, surround us. My book will open eyes of readers so they can enjoy the same U are such a natural part of my life.

Unidentified Hummingbird in Cuernavaca

The text of my book is now with another publisher with whom I connected through a friend on LinkedIn. I didn't send the entire proposal, and now am thinking that perhaps I should have. I think tonight I will do the revision of the post card on Zazzle and when it comes, send it, along with the full proposal, to the publisher. This might get it to the top of her pile and I might hear one way or the other.

If the response is not positive, I will start sending out the postcards. I think I may begin to create the back yard garden website to go with the book, since that may prove to be another selling point. I'm told that telling publishers you will create a website, isn't as convincing as having one up. So here we go again. Into the fray!!!

Go out and enjoy your backyard for a bit now, before you spend any more time on line. Even if it's dark out!! Go listen for an owl and look for a shooting star. If you see one, wish for the right publisher to discover my book, please.