Literally crafted by Katherine Kleymenova, ‘Archie’s First Adventure’ is so much more than a children’s book. Almost every scene in the story was hand-made by the author from polymer clay, wool, wood and paper, before being photographed and included in the book. The result is an enchanting small world that actually exists!
Calgary, AB -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/13/2015 -- Many children's authors are happy to hastily throw some words on paper, draft out illustrations and rush the book to market. But not Canada's Katherine Kleymenova; who hand-crafted the small world her book is set in – down to every last detail.
It was all in an effort to construct 'Archie's First Adventure', an uplifting tale that urges young readers never to give up.
Synopsis:
Archie the mouse, who lives in a little house under the big cedar's roots in the forest, has never been farther than Calm Creek. But when he receives a letter from his friend, Bruno, inviting him to visit for Christmas, Archie realizes it's time to do something very unusual - have a real adventure.
"Almost everything in the book was made by hand, using an abundance of materials from polymer clay to wire and wood in order to make the smallest of details come to life. The characters were made from wool, through a process called 'felting'," explains the author. "I then had a real small world in my house, the thing of dreams, and created each scene to be photographed for inclusion. I also went outside to use the natural environment, setting scenes up in my local park for ultimate realism."
Continuing, "From the log cabin to the tiniest teacup, I hand-made it all – and include a section in the book giving a "behind the scenes" look at how it all came to life. But we mustn't forget the story; Archie has many life lessons for children including always putting your best foot forward, striving to achieve dreams and pursuing the thirst for adventure."
Since its release, the book has garnered a string of rave reviews. Julie Tift comments, "When this book arrived and I opened the parcel with glee, what an absolutely beautiful book! The amount of work and effort that went into this book is phenomenal and what a fantastic story. This is a lovely story and so well told and wonderful photos too."
Anna Nesterovich adds, "The book is wonderful! That's exactly what we were looking for at the time. The story is simple and mundane, so my four-year-old can imagine himself in it. The pictures are full of details, that can hold a child for hours. The felted characters are made a little bit crudely for my taste, but there is a bright side to this: I was able to replicate them! So now we not only read the book, but bring it to live, making a "stage version" with our own copies of the toys and inventing new adventures for Archie and Bruno."
Emily Leeds was also spellbound. She writes, "I wanted to read the book as soon as I saw the cover. My kids loved the mixture between real and pretend. I like how the author shows you how she created the characters and scenes in the book. Archie is a cute little character who doesn't give up trying to find his lizard friend just in time for Christmas."
'Archie's First Adventure', from Cedar Alley Publishing, is available now: http://amzn.to/1yRZLq7
Follow the adventure on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/archiethemouse
About Katherine Kleymenova
"I was born in Russia, and have been living there for a long time until I moved to Canada six years ago. I've been working as a software developer for about 10 years but I always loved to write stories, draw, take pictures, and create various things of polymer clay and other materials.
I live with my family in Vancouver, British Columbia."