AWARD!!
YES!! Gasgeil has won not one but two Silver Quill Awards from the American Author's Association!! YAY!! Both for story content and illustration!!Welcome to Gasgeil's Bravery!
'Gasgeil's Bravery' was written by Christy and Illustrated by Linnette R.. We are very excited for you to visit our little site! This project was created thanks to my sister, Tanya! She sent me a link to a children's book contest and since the only other children's book I had finished was more than 500 words (which of course did not meet the criteria since it was WAY over word limit) I had to think fast for an entry. So, I sat at my computer, listening to Kenny Loggins (Return to Pooh's Corner), and looked around my room for something to write about. Welllll....a certain item caught my eye...one that had caught my eye for an earlier project but that one went into a completely different direction--hopefully it will be finished and published soon as well. The item that sparked my imagination was a wonderful wooden boat carved like a nautilus shell (for that I give thanks to my dear mum who gave it to me for one of my birthdays). Then I wondered what else could gain the attention and spark the imagination of a child? For that I enlisted two extraordinary test subjects! To me this story feels like it's more tailored for boys (what with the heroic mice, water dragon, and the sailing) but I do have hopes that girls will find it exciting as well.
Obviously, I didn't win the contest and it took ten months before I found someone willing to illustrate for me w/o being paid up front. Yeah, unfortunately, artists do have to eat and pay bills too so I can't really blame them. Strangely enough, I have known the illustrator for several years now but never realized her true potential until a recent picture she drew caught my eye. It called out to so many of my writing instincts that it made me ask her. Happily she said yes, so "Gasgeil's Bravery" was breathing again!
So here's to all those that believed in me! Stubbornness does pay off in the end!
Reviews and Nominations:
http://americanauthorsassociation.com/Book%20Review-Gasgeil’s%20Bravery-%20Condoleo.htm
Author: Christy Condoleo
Publisher: Xlibris
Reviewer: W. H. McDonald, Jr. – AAA Founder
Excellent Children’s Tale!
If you are looking for a book for your children to read, or to have read to them, that has some good principled messages and is still entertaining, then I recommend “Gasgeil’s Bravery.” Children’s author Christy Condoleo is at her very best with this colorfully illustrated story book for younger children. Linnette Rodriguez does a splendid job capturing the story with her artwork. The two of them produce a real classy book for young children.
This book rates on my children’s book scale - FIVE TEDDY BEARS! It gets my personal recommendation. It has also been nominated for one of the American Authors Association 2008 annual book awards for children’s books. It is really that good!
Author page
If you would like a look at what the cover and a few of the pages are like, click on the 'Process' page. I put the finished pages at the bottom since it is the 'final' process in the making. As you can see, the pictures are full page illustrations , the cover is glossy and made w/a thick card stock, it has a regular hard spine, and the pages are quite vivid in color (36 pages in total, though the story is really just 32 pages long). I am in the process of switching publishers so I will be adding another link to where you can buy the book soon and possibly have it at more online retailers. I will update once it is ready.
If you would like to contact me: Christy@eppyscreations.com
