Out In The Cold is already getting a warm reception.
The new family book published by the Lakes Animal Friendship Society (LAFS) is freshly out on bookstore shelves just as the winter weather is setting in.
The story is about a family, their beloved backyard dog, and the challenges of being responsible pet owners on a tight family budget.
There is some pain involved, but there are also some solutions to the problems.
One of the solutions that presents itself in the fictitious story is getting a donated doghouse for the protagonist pooch. This part was not fiction. LAFS co-ordinates an actual program whereby high school students, under the direction of their wood shop teacher Dirk Hofer at Lakes District secondary school, build a whole bunch of doghouses that are made available to people who have financial challenges. Other classes join to outfit the doghouses for warmth and paint them for aesthetics. College of New Caledonia construction students also help do some of this work.
The sale of the book helps support these efforts.
It was written by Lakes District couple Valerie Ingram and Alistair Schroff, co-founders of LAFS, and illustrated by famed New York artist Amanda Moeckel, who has illustrated for the literary side of Playboy Magazine, for Gap Kids, Kinetica Records and other high profile visuals. Children's books are one of her favourite outlets, and she has a highly developed aptitude for animal aid as well. She is the founder of MyAnimalArt.com and ConsiderAnimals.com.
"I came into this project through a fellow animal advocate and artist, Twyla Francois, who suggested me to Valerie. I feel very lucky to have been connected to such great people to work with," said Moeckel, who recently graduated with a master's degree in illustration, with a focus on picture books.
Moeckel has a unusual range of styles and genres she works in.
From surrealist fantasy to detailed realism, from wild dreamlike colours to earthy softness, she has a utilitarian dexterity.
For Out Of The Cold she opted for a cartoonish feel with simple backgrounds and easygoing colour tones of blues and reds, with a popping blonde used to illustrate the dog character.
"I chose this style for illustration mainly because I've been obsessed with watercolor for the past year or so. Also, my work previous to this book hasn't been very earthbound, so I liked the challenge of bringing a little bit of the ethereal to this grounded story," she said.
The creative arts required to build a family picture book are multiple. The paintings are one element, and the words are another.
Schroff said the story was heavily self-edited by Ingram, a teacher by profession and by now a seasoned veteran of delivering the group's animal messages to classrooms of children. More than 6,000 student visits have been accomplished so far by LAFS. Many of them have been done in the name of the organization's first book Nobody's Cats, which raised awareness and understanding about feral cats and the need to spay or neuter the unclaimed pets in any community.
"The idea behind the books is education, inspiration and celebration," said Schroff. "Both these books have a strong element of student involvement. We wanted to celebrate what the kids have done, with the creation of the book and the Doghouse Project itself. We hope that inspires other communities, other groups, to take this on after seeing that we did it."
Schroff laughed that he and Ingram figured their second go at being author/publishers would be easier. It was and it wasn't. They did capitalize on some lessons learned from Nobody's Cats, but a whole new set of curve balls also came at them. One of the hardest was glitches obtaining an illustrator, until finally the right introductions were made to Moekel.
"She took the project to a whole other level," Schroff said.
"It was nice working with this artist, a very talented and professional person, and someone who understood what we were trying to accomplish. And we hit all our deadlines."
Moeckel couldn' agree more.
"This book was a fantastic way to combine animal advocacy with children's book illustration, my two biggest interests," she said.
"Long ago - 20 years or so - I took up the animal cause, becoming vegan and working with local advocacy groups. Six years ago, I had a similar urge to focus on picture books. So I couldn't dream up a more perfect wedding of the two things I care most about."
With the momentum of the books helping to spread the organization's messages about humane treatment of animals, Schroff let a cat out of the bag. There will definitely be a third book.
"No doubt about it," he said, then coyly added, "But what would it be about? That is still under discussion. It has to touch on the basic needs of animals, but again, northern feel, rural feel, reflective of a mixed community and a First Nations region. We were very deliberate about having our books accurately reflect our area, and that is something that has to be a part of anything we do in the future, too."
Out Of The Cold is out in time for Christmas. Animal welfare organizations and libraries all over Canada have been calling already to order copies, and in Prince George it is available for retail purchase at Petland (at 5910 Southridge Ave. near Home Depot and Canadian Tire).
For more information on LAFS, visit their website at www.lakesanimalfriendship.ca or their Facebook page.
