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Picture Books are often inspired by my granddaughters. When the second oldest was three, I watched her putting plush animals on chairs and wondered, “What would she do if she had more bears than chairs?” The universal need to share caused Bears on Chairs plus other Bear titles to appear in translation in many countries around the world. |
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The Friendship Doll series began with a picture of my oldest granddaughter when she was three and celebrated Girl’s Day celebrations with her mother’s family in Japan. Research surprised me with an account of a real event in 1929 when American children sent nearly 13,000 dolls to Japan, hoping to establish friendship and head off war between our two countries. The Japanese sent back 58 large Dolls of Gratitude created by celebrated doll makers, along with many small accessories.
Ship of Dolls An American girl tries to win a contest to see the dolls off in San Francisco and to rejoin her late mother who is living there. Dolls of Hope Emily Grace, the doll from Lexie's class, now a gift to a Japanese girl given the responsibility for one of the American dolls while struggling with hard feelings from a jealous classmate. Dolls of War Features an American girl trying to save the big Japanese doll that created a special bond with her late mother at a time when, in both countries, the dolls became symbols of the enemy. |
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