Sophie the Monarch Butterfly: Mission to Mexico follows a small young Monarch butterfly who is determined to lead her group of butterflies to Mexico even when faced with challenges. What was the inspiration for your story?

We all know that Monsanto’s genetically engineered crops and the pesticides they promote can wreak havoc on our farms, food, and environment. But did you know they are also playing a big role in the quickly disappearing Monarchs? Roundup doesn’t kill Monarchs directly but rather kills their primary food source, the milkweed plant.

I belong to an organization called Friends of the Earth which is dedicated to saving endangered species including insects such as bees and butterflies.

When I read in their newsletter that the North American Monarch Butterfly population has declined by 90 percent due to the use of Roundup on the milkweed plant, their only food source, I decided to write a story about these beautiful creatures and their incredible migratory patterns. As an author of books for children, I am always looking for heroic role models who kids can relate to. Monarch butterflies who appear delicate and fragile but who must undertake this amazing journey in order to survive seemed like a good adventure storyline if I could create a strong lead character in a butterfly. Sophie the Monarch Butterfly is about a precious and brave little butterfly who we follow from the moment she hatches through her life cycle as she leads an annual migration of Monarchs 3000 miles from North America to Mexico. She must overcome obstacles and disbeliefs from her own community along the way. Sophie is also the name of my first grandchild, and both granddaughter and butterfly share the same attributes of belief in self, leadership, good judgment, and caring for others.

What educational aspects were important for you to include in this children’s book?

Scientists do not fully understand the navigational abilities of Monarch Butterflies. Every fall, North American monarch butterflies make the journey from their breeding grounds to their overwintering sites. Sophie emerges from her cocoon on a milkweed plant east of the Rocky Mountains, near the Canadian border. As the weather turns colder, she joins other monarchs traveling from their summer breeding grounds south to Mexico. She survives this long journey by making stops at refuge sites with abundant nectar from milkweed plants and shelter from the harsh elements. She instinctively knows to overwinter along with millions of other monarch butterflies in the central mountain forests, clinging to Oyamel trees from October to late March. The mountain hillsides of Oyamel forest provide an ideal climate for Sophie. The temperature is mild. The humidity in the Oyamel forest assures the monarchs won’t dry out, allowing them to conserve their energy. When the weather turns warm, Sophie starts her return journey, but only a short distance before she lays her own eggs on a milkweed plant and, after her caterpillars hatch, stays behind as they continue their journey north. Her journey and life cycle are over along with the story.

The art in this book is fantastic. What was the art collaboration process like with the illustrator?

I think I’ll let my dear friend, Linda Chambers, who illustrated Sophie address this question. For me, all I can say is that we worked together, two hands in one glove, knowing that for a children’s book, the illustrations tell the story as much if not more than the words. I changed words as Linda’s sketches came to life to help her make them even more powerful. Take it away Linda…

“I’m very familiar with Celia’s work and was thrilled that she’d asked me to create Sophie; at the same time, the task of bringing such an important story to life was daunting. Celia’s Sophie is a hero, a champion. Sophie matters. It all came down to both understanding and honoring the story Celia was telling. We divided up the text, stanza by stanza. We knew the number of pages we’d have to work with. How much could be told by a single illustration, most of which would be spread across two pages? Celia’s poem is powerful, lyrical, and extremely visual. I sketched a variety of possible illustrations based on her text. Gradually, Sophie came to life for both of us. Celia was supportive and enthusiastic from beginning to end. Every suggestion she made lifted the work.”

What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?

I always write about endangered species because as time goes on, the majority of these species become more endangered due to population growth, corporate greed, poaching, and sadly, game hunting for sport. If just one child is captured by the story of a baby elephant, honey bee, red panda, or butterfly and is motivated to get involved, then the story has value beyond simply being a sweet story about an animal or insect. A good example is my next book, Charlotte, A Yellowstone Wolf Pup in which the main character is a wolf pup whose mother is an Alpha Wolf, a leader of a pack of 12 wolves in Yellowstone National Park. Charlotte is a very independent little pup and must learn that, in order to survive in the wilds of the park, she must conform to the rules of the pack. Charlotte, Yellowstone Pup will be coming out in early 2025. I want to mention that, once I’ve completed the story, I research which charities are most impactful when it comes to teaching or actively saving the endangered species in the story. I use Charity Navigator to vet my choices. When I receive a royalty check from Leschenault Press for a specific book, I donate the entire amount to one of the charities listed on the back cover of the book.

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