MOOSOMIN — What is your pet thinking? It’s something everyone has pondered at some point. Perhaps they’re on a mission themselves, trying to wrap their minds around a human concept or phrase they hear most often.
This is the impetus behind They Call Me Quirky - the first book by local retired teacher, Karen Berglund.
“It’s pretty exciting. I have held it in my hands and it’s just amazing. It’s always been a dream of mine to write my own children’s book, but now that I’ve written it, and I’ve held it in my hands, it’s like my dream just got bigger,” Berglund said. “I knew I always wanted to write a book for children and I wanted humour to be a big part of it, but there is an important message as well that goes along inside the book. It’s all about perspective.”
They Call Me Quirky takes the reader on a journey as one small dog decides to figure out what the word ‘quirky’ actually means.
“It’s written from a tiny five-pound Pomeranian’s point of view and he always hears this word around him: quirky. If you know dogs, or if you’re familiar with dogs, they have real personalities and he always hears this word ‘quirky’, but he doesn’t know what it means,” explained Berglund. “His encounters during the day make you wonder who really is the quirky one. From a dog’s perspective, things are totally different and that’s what I want children to understand or to try to see a situation from somebody else’s point of view.”
It is this important message of expanding one’s worldview that Berglund hopes to get across to her readers, drawing from her 32 years of teaching experience.
“Children as they develop, they’re naturally very egocentric when they’re small and kids normally will grow out of that, or they’ll start to see a bigger picture of the world,” Berglund said. “But there are some kids that struggle with it and even adults, actually, that struggle with seeing something from someone else’s point of view.”
The book itself is not just about the tale of one dog’s quest for understanding, Berglund has loaded it with useful items educators can use, plus one big mystery.
“From a teacher’s point of view, I’ve put in some things that I think teachers will really like and they can use this as a resource in their classroom,” she said. “I’ve loaded my book with synonyms for ‘quirky’ and I tried to make this an interactive book as well. In the illustrations, I have hidden clues to the dog’s real name. My challenge to children is to see if they can figure out the real name of the dog, it’s not Quirky. See if they can figure out the real name of the dog before the end of the story.”
The book officially launched on Dec. 7, and is currently available to order on Amazon. However, a book signing event will be held on Dec. 14 at the Moosomin Regional Library from 2-3 p.m. and 6-8 p.m.
“I think it would make the perfect Christmas gift because everyone getting together with the holidays, families have little ‘quirky’ in them,” Berglund said.
Inspiration for the protagonist came as a melding of several canine personalities, as Berglund explained.
“This quirky character in my book is a combination of every dog I’ve ever known or loved,” she said.
“I do have three of the world’s quirkiest Pomeranians in my house right now, there are some some bits of them in this story as well.”
As with many journeys, the most difficult step was the first one. Berglund noted not knowing where to begin on the road to writing a children’s book, but after some gentle prompting from her husband, she decided to take the plunge.
“I didn’t know where to start. I was just stuck, I had no idea,” Berglund said. “I’ve seen school author visits, people would come in and do their stories and I just thought, well, where would I start myself?”
Berglund met with publisher Miriam Laundry, who also assists aspiring children’s book authors to realize their dream. Along with Sharon Jennings - who has more than 70 titles under her belt and is most famous for the Franklin series - their classes propelled Berglund to new heights.
“Sharon ended up being my editor,” Berglund noted. “She edited my book for me, I just felt so honoured that someone of that calibre would do that.”
Add in the vibrant talents of Connecticut-based illustrator Michele Katz, and They Call Me Quirky sprang to life!
“Now that I’ve written my first book, I’m hooked,” Berglund said, adding that she has some other writing projects in the works. “I just loved the entire process from start to finish!”
“Going forward, I would like to promote other Saskatchewan authors as well,” she continued. “My next dream is to be able to go in and to do school visits for children. I would love to see more of that in the schools. In Saskatchewan - especially in the rural areas - we don’t have as much access to things like that as the urban centres do.”
Of course, the first school on Berglund’s list is her previous ‘second home’.
“MacLeod School is very special to my heart,” she said. “I spent 32 years of my career in MacLeod School. Going to MacLeod is very much like going home and so I’m going to be doing my first school visit there. We’re going to coordinate that with Literacy Week, so I’m very excited about that.”
“I’ve always wanted to write a children’s book, but I didn’t realize how wonderful it would be to be able to have a hobby or a second career and still spend it with children and it makes them laugh and enjoy themselves and feel good about themselves, too,” concluded Berglund.
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