Maria Felicia Kelley has done a bit of everything in her
life
– and now that she’s moved to Morgan Hill, she’s chasing a
career as a children’s book author.
Morgan Hill – Maria Felicia Kelley has done a bit of everything in her life – and now that she’s moved to Morgan Hill, she’s chasing a career as a children’s book author.
In December, Kelley published her debut offering in the children’s genre, “Buz Words: Discovering Words in Pairs,” through her small literary production company, April Arts Press.
It’s not too far a stretch for Kelley. Her long resume includes being a stock broker and a New York City restaurant manager, but more recently she held a job as a PBS production specialist in Phoenix, Ariz., doing promos for kids’ shows along with directing live pledge drives.
She even published her memoirs, “The Choice I Made,” in 1996 through April Arts.
But Kelley didn’t find out she wanted to write and illustrate a children’s book until two years ago when she stumbled upon a language paradox while feeding her oldest son.
“We had just read a book about a train that said ‘chu chu,’ and I was telling him to ‘chew chew’ his food,” said Kelley, who moved with her husband and two young boys, ages 2 and 4, to Morgan Hill last May. “I realized right away the challenge that kids have with words that sound alike, and recognized the opportunity to help clarify that.”
Kelley’s 32-page book tells the story of a boy named Buz spending the afternoon with his mother. Buz’s mom sings “buzz buzz buzz” to the bees and from there Buz discovers other homonyms such as flower and flour and sun and son.
To make the book a tool for educators, Kelley’s Web site, aprilartspress.com, includes lesson plans, games and puzzles for teachers.
Recognizing its educational value, USA Book News, a company that tracks books from both mainstream and independent presses, recently named “Buz Words” a finalist in the pre-kindergarten educational category of its annual Best Books Awards.
The title is available on Amazon and recently was acquired by the Morgan Hill and Gilroy public libraries.
Kelley, who earned bachelor’s degree in journalism from Arizona State University in 2000 as a re-entry student, said she used to diagram sentences with her grandmother and has always had an affinity for writing.
She now plans to turn “Buz Words” into a series.
On a side note, she’s also excited about the new Morgan Hill library scheduled to open July 21 behind City Hall on Peak Avenue. The 28,000-square-foot building will boast a large children’s area Kelly said her two young boys are bound to enjoy.
“These kids eat up books,” she laughed. “I moved here at the right time. We get to be a part of the old library and see the new one open.”
MEET THE AUTHOR
Maria Felicia Kelley will sign copies of her book 11:30am to 12:30pm, May 12, at BookSmart in downtown Morgan Hill.
