Scary monsters under their beds might be among the first fears little children can express. Who am I kidding? I remember being spooked by a ghost surely hidden behind a forbidding looking locked door, in the bedroom of the ancient manor I shared several times with a friend as a young teenager... remember Ollie? We didn’t even dare to peek at that door, let alone going near it!. But I am digressing.

My children and I realized that it is easier to soothe the fear by talking about and dissecting the scary monster with some light-hearted reasoning and laughter; the scary monster will magically shrink into a harmless flea and disappear.

I am happy to share that The Scary Monster that wasn’t is now available on Amazon. It is a bed time book to be read to toddlers, a first book for what will hopefully become their library. I firmly believe that gifting books to children from the beginning is going to inspire and support their love for reading. The Scary Monster is a thoughtful idea for a baby shower (I actually wrote it as a gift to the daughter of a friend who was expecting her first baby.) There isn’t much that is more important than instigating a young child’s love for books! Children will soon outgrow cute outfits and toys, the love of reading will stay with them for ever.