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Believe in the Impossible
Oh, No, Bunny – You’re Still Not Funny! follows non-identical twins who each wish for a different pet and are visited by their father’s imaginary bunny friend. What was the inspiration for your story?
When I first came up with the idea to do the Happy Tails series, I planned to have animals feature just as prominently as the humans did. Since everything is mainly featured around a holiday, well – bunnies came to mind. A good portion of the antics in the first bunny book were from real life experience. That story about the spaghetti – that was from an actual pet rabbit attacking my plate. Until then, I had no idea that bunnies could like spaghetti. Maybe it’s not good for them, but that rabbit wanted the pasta badly . . . and it makes a really good story!
What were some ideas that were important for you to personify in your characters?
A good portion of us have had imaginary friends or have used our imagination in play to entertain ourselves. I wanted this book to hold on to the precious land called “Childhood” where we can believe in the impossible and use our imaginations to enjoy the world around us. I wanted the twins to be like any other brother and sister – they annoy each other, but they are also capable of working together to achieve a common goal, which – in this case – was to contain Yakov the rabbit’s insane zest for life that could often go more wrong than right sometimes.
Are there any emotions or memories from your own life that you put into your characters’ lives?
Well, the bunny story. We had bunnies on the farm, but they were outside bunnies. The bunny spaghetti story actually came from an indoor pet bunny.
Because I lived on the farm when I was a child, our house was located too far from any of my school friends to visit, so I spent a lot of time by myself entertaining myself. How did I do that? Imagination. I made up my own stories in my mind, and I read lots of books.
Will there be a follow-up book on this story? If so, what aspects of the story will the next book cover?
It’s funny that you should ask me this question. I honestly thought after this book, that I couldn’t take it any further, but I was wrong. I have come up with a really great idea for the third installment that will keep all the current characters and add 2 new surprising ones. If you thought the first two books were insane, the third one gets even better.
I’m not sure what the front book cover will look like. I usually watch what illustrations Christina Cartwright, my illustrator, produces to see if I like any of them for the front cover, which, eventually I do. As for the back cover, I like ending it with everyone sitting under the old oak tree, like a family.
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Sascha’s twins – Sorcha and Dmitry – have heard tales of their father’s imaginary bunny friend (Yakov) for years, and all they did was laugh at the tales that their father shared with them. At least that’s all they believed it ever would be – just funny stories to entertain.
Imagine their surprise when they meet Yakov in person for themselves. There are not enough words in the English language to prepare anyone for meeting such a wildly crazy hare!
Before they have time to prepare, Yakov is racing out the front door of their home and is set loose upon the neighborhood. Can the two kids stop him from creating more havoc than any one person should ever be allowed?
Everyone thinks at some point in their life that they would like a pet, but absolutely no one is prepared for the unbelievable trouble into which a bunny like Yakov can get! Oh, bunny, here we go again!
Oh, Lords!: Who We Date, Why We Date Them, and What We’ve Learned
![Oh, Lords!: Who We Date, Why We Date Them, and What We’ve Learned by [Jes Averhart, Terresa Zimmerman]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51DVDkKj4gL.jpg)
Oh, Lords!: Who We Date, Why We Date Them, and What We’ve Learned by Terresa Zimmerman and Jes Averhart is an amusing and uniquely insightful book on dating. Authors Zimmerman and Averhart share their personal dating stories and experiences, the good and the bad. They discuss the different types of men that they met and label them based on their personalities. The author’s breakdown of each archetype along with their personal experiences tell you what signs to look for. This is not a self-help book or a how-to book, but instead it is a book on the dating experiences both author’s faced, and in sharing those experiences we get to learn about the men out there but also much more about ourselves and what we want out of a relationship.
There are many times I have been out with my girlfriends eating dinner and talking and the conversation inevitably steers towards men and dating. This book gave me that same comfortable buzz I get when talking with my friends about dating. The language feels so easy and free flowing in that same dinner chat way. I was engaged throughout the book because of the witty and conversational tone.
I enjoyed the creative archetypes they used and the comical images that accompanied the descriptions of each man, making it very easy to imagine what is going on and you feel as though you are in the story. As you are reading about the authors’ experiences you begin to reflect on the dating experiences you’ve gone through and realize you may have run into a few lords yourself. Both authors’ perfectly incorporated their personalities in the story and I found myself laughing as I was reading. But while the book can be humorous it also touches upon a more serious topic which is abuse in a relationship and signs to look out for. I also appreciated that both authors also stated that because their book is written from a heterosexual perspective this book can be read as gender agnostic.
Oh, Lords! Who We Date, Why We Date Them, and What We’ve Learned is a delightful, humorous, and illuminating read that I would recommend to anyone in the dating world, or anyone that is looking for a fun memoir of two women’s dating experiences.
Pages: 284 | ASIN: B09BRHRBYX
LITERARY TITAN 