Audrey Pridham
Years ago, Old Ottawa East resident Mary Trudeau stashed away drawings she made of strange little creatures and their home planet. Upon finding them last year and deciding that she didn’t want to part with them, she then used her concept drawings and knowledge as an engineer specializing in water resources to write and publish her first children’s book, entitled A Tale of Two Planets.
First-time children’s book author, Mary Trudeau, wrote A Tale of Two Planets, based upon her belief that people have lost their connection wit the beauty of our planet. Photo Supplied
The delightful and imaginative story follows the Wooshidooz on their home planet of Retha, who are told stories of Earth and of all the wonderous processes the planet goes through to maintain its beauty in comparison to their home on Retha.
The book was released around the beginning of July, and Trudeau is proud to have her story out. “It wasn’t a journey I’ve been planning, it’s just something that started with imagination and a few little sketches,” she said.
Trudeau’s main inspiration for her tale stems from her belief that we have lost the connection with the beauty of our planet. While she didn’t necessarily want to scare children or warn them of the dangers that could occur if we don’t care for our planet, she did want to inspire them to keep their wonder and appreciation for Earth. Throughout her years as an engineer focussed on water, Trudeau’s work and her studies have helped her appreciate the connection that water has with our environment.
As for future plans, Trudeau hopes to write another children’s book because of how much she enjoyed doing it, as well as the creative freedom she had. “There’s no walls [or] box,” she explained. “You can do what you want!”
“The way our planet runs, everything is interconnected and does all of this stuff for us. And I was thinking, ‘what if it didn’t, [and] how difficult would it be?’”
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Although she had already gone through the publishing process, having written scholarly journal articles and reports, this was Trudeau’s first time publishing a children’s book and partnering with an illustrator. FriesenPress, which published A Tale of Two Planets, gave Trudeau three different options for artists who would illustrate the story. Eventually, Trudeau decided on Nicholas Donovan Mueller, whom she was drawn to due to his imagination and the artistic elements that he added to her story. “It just really came to life,” she said.
Trudeau also says that her story would not be the same without her family’s support. She said that she was given lots of feedback and ideas from them throughout the writing process. In fact, the term “Wooshidooz” was created by her son when he was younger, a term with which he used to describe aliens, and Trudeau knew that it was something she had to incorporate into the story when deciding what to name her creatures.
While A Tale of Two Planets is a book aimed at children, Trudeau says that the overall message from the story can apply to readers young and old. “For kids, the message is to continue to be amazed,” she said. “For the parents, we really need to love our planet. There [are] all kinds of things we can do. It’s the feeling and the intent behind it that will ultimately make the difference.”
A Tale of Two Planets is available for purchase online through Friesen Press and can be found at local Ottawa book stores, including Singing Pebble Books.
