We’ll be giving away our new kids’ audiobook–recorded with the voices of six kids, three adults, and one dog–Sat. Sept. 22 at the Hillsboro Public Library Local Authors Fair.

We just finished recording the “Bash and Lucy Fetch Team Vera and the Dream Beasts,” audiobook, which features the voices of me (Lisa), Michael, age 10, and five of his friends, age 10-12. Also featured will be the Ukrainian-accent-laced voice of Vera, Michael’s surrogate grandma, who appears as a character in the book. We also dedicate the book to Vera.

Michael’s 20-year-old sister, Ally, the model for the girlpower “Ally” character, reads her lines.

And last but not least, our dog, Hudson, supplies the barks in the kids’ audiobook.

Here’s a very short sample that features the voices of Michael, Sammy (who reads for girlpower Paula) and Vera:

Bash and Lucy Fetch Team Vera audiobook sample

At the fair, Lisa will be participating in a panel about diversity in children’s literature. She’ll be discussing why and how she and Michael gave Bash, the main character, sensory sensitivities. In short, our aim was to give readers a feel for what kids with sensory sensitivities feel like when exposed to the stimulation that’s hard for them. As we say in the book, Bash gets  grumpy, disruptive, and prone to temper tantrums if he’s hungry or overwhelmed. His friends and family members try to help him with hugs, back rubs, and home-cooked, sugar-free food.

In spite of the fact that Bash is supported by his friends and most of his family members, he faces a big challenge: His cousin, Paula, thinks that under Title IX, her soccer team has the right to have Bash’s dear dog, Lucy, as coach.

As you can hear in the sample, Paula has strong feelings about equal opportunities for girls. She is one of three “girlpower” characters in the book, and each character displays her “girlpower” characteristics in different ways.

 

 

 

As we wrote the book, we had faith that Bash had the smarts and determination to work things out with Paula. But some of our readers didn’t like the fact that a sensory-sensitive boy would be challenged by his cousin in this way. Lisa will discuss this issue, too. In short, sensory-sensitive doesn’t mean helpless–and Bash is by no means helpless in the book.

We’re giving away audiobooks this fall in other ways, as well. We’ll soon announce another giveaway of the new kids’ audiobook for Bash and Lucy Fetch Team Vera and the Dream Beasts.

If you’d like us to send you a CD of the audiobook for review, email us at BashAndLucy@gmail.com! We can also send links. It will be available on Audible soon.

If you’re a teacher and would like us to visit with you via Skype or in person, email us at BashAndLucy@gmail.com!

 

 

Be sure to watch Michael dedicate the book to his immigrant grandma, Vera: