Posted on July 9: Creative writing student invents magnificent mouth adventure
[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/Amy-Dennis-photo.jpg” caption=”Amy Dennis”]A little girl loves the older boy who lives across the street because he has “train tracks” on his teeth. She believes there's a train in there somewhere, and she is determined to ride it. When it finally appears, it escapes from James' mouth and takes her on an exciting journey right through the centre of the earth. . .to China.
This imaginative story is the brainchild of McMaster creative writing student Amy Dennis, whose children's book James Parsons and His Magnificent Mouth of Adventure was just released by Potlatch Publications.
“This is a story about celebrating people who are 'different',” says Dennis, 27, who will graduate this fall with a certificate in creative writing from McMaster. She says the story comes from a personal experience which she uses to develop the theme of how children view differences in others. “I wanted to explore some of the things kids are typically embarrassed about and turn them into positives,” says Dennis. “The narrator accepts James' dental braces and sees them in a different light.”
Dennis plans to enroll in the Master of Fine Arts Creative Writing Program at the University of British Columbia this fall.
Publisher Robert Nielsen, who teaches in McMaster's Creative Writing Program, is proud Potlatch Publications has produced Dennis' book. “I have been teaching writing at McMaster University for 15 years, and this is the first time my company has published a student's work. The story is so original and off-the-wall, I couldn't resist.”
James Parsons and His Magnificent Mouth of Adventure (32-page wide format full-colour hardcover, $19.95) is illustrated by Hamilton artist Mary Trach-Holadyk (former art director, The Canadian Children's Annual), and includes a fascinating history of dental braces by noted orthodontist John Bozek.
A book launch will be held on Sunday, July 25 at the Hamilton Museum of Steam & Technology (900 Woodward Ave.), from 2-5 p.m., with Dennis and Holadyk in attendance.
