NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 14, 2022
New children’s book encourages readers to forage and garden!
UPPER MARLBORO, Maryland
Kathy Anderson and Karen Bowlding, identical twins, outdoor enthusiasts, and emerging growers joined hands in launching a children’s picture book that connects children to the land as guided by elders. They spent their childhood years hiking in the woods, wading in streams, tromping through wetlands, and playing in the dirt. Along with their siblings, they foraged wild berries, grapes, and honeysuckle, and watched their elders prepare foods collected from their backyard.
Fern and Ginger: Dandelions and Watermelons is about gathering natural, fresh, and wild ingredients from close to home. Fern foraged with his grandmother which provided the occasion for the family to experience how food was supposed to taste at its highest nutritional value. Ginger was inspired to start a garden when the family visited a local farm. She received her first seeds and gardening book from Mr. Sass, a generational farmer.
Bonnetta Adeeb, founder of the UJAMAA Cooperative Farming Alliance, an organization dedicated to increasing diversity in the farming and seed industry using environmentally sustainable practices stated, “Every time parent reads a book to a child, they are learning, too. The basis of knowledge should be around the production of food and nature. It is super important for us to drop the pipeline down to younger and younger folks. The Bible says that if you raise up a child in the way it should go, it won’t depart from that. Teach it early. Our people need to be connected to their roots and this is how we do it.”
The authors wrote Fern and Ginger: Dandelions and Watermelons to inspire youngsters to be as self-sufficient as their elders and added safe foraging and gardening tips. Fern and Ginger is a perfect tool for parents, guardians, librarians, and teachers to discuss ways to obtain food from the land. The book is available at www.awisquad.com and www.karenbowlding.net.
For more information about Kathy and Karen’s book, to inquire about a review copy, or to schedule an interview or book reading, contact Karen Bowlding.
Media Contact: Karen Bowlding
Email: karenbowlding@gmail.com
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August 9, 2021
Email: Karenbowlding@gmail.com
New children’s book encourages readers to become a fish hobbyist!
UPPER MARLBORO, Maryland Parents looking for a hobby to entertain and teach their children about freshwater and tropical fish and other creatures have a new resource to help them to decide if they want to have an aquarium at home.
Written by Karen Bowlding, Big Les’ Fish Store is about her late father’s tropical fish store that was located on Eastern Avenue and Dix Street, NE, Washington, D.C. Big Les with his partner Sonny were proud owners. Big Les sold all kinds of delightful and menacing fish, baby alligators, salamanders, turtles, and seahorses. He taught his customers how to create exciting aquariums and care for fish at home. He also told awesome fish tales.
Read about a busy day with lots of visitors and learn about tropical and freshwater fish, their aquatic environment, and the foods they eat. This book includes 10 fun fish facts and more. Discover the wonderful life of a fish hobbyist!
The idea for this project came about during a quiet moment in the middle of the pandemic. Karen heard the title in a dream and wrote the first draft the next day. “I wanted to honor my father by telling a part of his story. He was a self-learner and had what seemed like hundreds of books about fish. He had over 30 aquariums at home and many people stopped by to enjoy his hobby. He opened the store when my siblings and I were young. It was one of our favorite places to hang out and spend time with him.”
Karen Bowlding is a freelance writer, editor, graphic and website designer, researcher, and publishing specialist, honing her craft since the early 2000s. Karen has also written and published Living In Autumn While Preparing For Spring: The Journey Towards Marriage and Say No With A Smile! She earned her undergraduate degree from Springfield College and graduate degree from University of Maryland University College. Karen Bowlding was born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Prince George’s County, MD.
For more information about Karen’s book, to inquire about a review copy, or to schedule an interview or book reading, please contact her at 202-413-8049 or karenbowlding@gmail.com. To order, visit www.karenbowlding.net.