Cobb resident Alethea Eason will be on the book-signing tour next month for “Hungry,” her first children”s book published by HarperCollins. The 208-page hardcover book is a science fiction/fantasy story geared to children 9 to 12 years old.
A teaching guide and lesson plans accompany “Hungry” according to Eason, a 20-year educator, Minnie Cannon Elementary School teacher and reading specialist.
“As a teacher, I understand the demands of using state-based curriculum and not having time to teach everything expected; therefore, lessons accompany my book,” Eason said. “The lessons are designed around sixth grade curriculum standards and include English-language arts, math, science, social studies, behavior intervention and healthy eating.
“Teachers of other grades, and in states other than California, should find lessons applicable for their classrooms as well.”
Deborah Jones, the protagonist in “Hungry,” reflects on, among other things, the necessity of eating, the effects of consuming resources, genetics and evolution.
A sixth-grade girl, Deborah, is also known as “Dbkrrrsh” by her family and the rest of her species. Her family has come to Earth to make preparations for an invasion. She is caught between wanting to be a good citizen of the Home World, living up to her parents” expectations and the values she has learned growing up in America.
The dilemma she faces is a moral one as she has been brought up to believe that in order to survive she must feed on human beings. Her best friend, Willy, who has started sixth grade as a social outcast, becomes the focal point of her problem. She is expected to feed on him to prove her loyalty to her planet.
Local publication parties, author presentations and book-signing events include:
? 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 4, at The Bookkeeper, Cobb Center, State Route 175.;
? 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 6, at Funtopia Toys & Games, Middletown;
? 10 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 9, at Copperfield”s Books, Calistoga;
? 12:30 to 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 18, at Pomo Elementary School, Clearlake;
? 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 21, at Wild About Books, Clearlake,
? 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 28, at Gallery Bookshop, Mendocino; and
? 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 17, at Barnes and Noble, Santa Rosa.
For more details about “Hungry,” see the HarperCollins Web site, www.harpercollinschildrens.com/.
