Lilly Esther is back – this time saving her neighbourhood park – as children’s author, Phyllis Bordo, returns to Master’s Book Store in Haliburton Aug. 10 with copies of her newest book in a series.
Bordo said she now has four books featuring her main character, and she’ll bring them all this Saturday between 11 a.m., and 3 p.m. She’ll also be at the Minden branch of the Haliburton County Public Library Aug. 9 from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., reading from her new book, Lilly Esther Rescues her Park.
“Lilly Esther’s going down the slide one day and she says to her little dog, who’s waiting at the bottom ‘eww, look at my hands, they’re all gooey.’ And there’s bubble gum strewn across her fingers like slime. And she looks everywhere and says, ‘look, there’s garbage everywhere, destroying our park. How are we going to stop this happening?”
The author said Lilly and her dog, Olivia, come up with a plan but people have to read the book to find out what it is.
“My books deal with topics not often talked about in children’s picture books,” Bordo said.
Her first was Lilly Esther Conquers the Worries, dealing with anxiety. “There is a lot of that in the schools. That seems to be my number one seller and it seems to be what the schools want to hear.”
The second is a true story based on the loss of the family dog, Quincy, and is called Quincy Loves Lilly Esther Forever. Bordon said It’s done in a humourous and loving way, making the kids laugh. “I never have a teary eye leave my classroom, but it does introduce loss and grief into their lives, because parents don’t often know how to introduce it. So, it starts a conversation.” She said she had sold a lot of the books to adults, as they act as icebreakers when people “are in those situations.”
The third book is Lilly Esther, Queen of Magic. “Parents sometimes are a little bit busy so she finds a way to get their attention and proves that she is queen of magic, she doesn’t give up, she’s determined, she finds a way.”
Bordo, a Toronto-based author and Lake Kashagawigamog cottager, began writing about Lilly Esther in 2018.
A former teacher, she said she was volunteering at a library but couldn’t find books that dealt with kids’ worries.
“So, I thought ‘let’s write one’,” she said. “They’re real issues that aren’t often dealt with in kids’ books.” Lilly Esther is inspired by Bordo’s own granddaughter. “The books became truly a family affair,” Bordo said.
Her family even had a hand in picking an illustrator. Lilly Esther’s world is brought to life through Rayanne Vieira’s colourful and expressive art.
Lilly Esther books are available at Master’s Book Store, Indigo and online.
