Central Library, Indianapolis

Co-authors Alison Madden and Joan Bunte took Alison's children - Joan's grandchildren - to the main public library in downtown Indianapolis on 13th June 2013. It is a fantastic, state-of-the-art library, with a vast children's section. Imagine our delight when we saw our book - Fred & Fiona Flea: The Crown Jewels Caper - on the shelf?! What fun!

Author Alison Madden at The International School of Indiana

I had a wonderful morning with two classes at the International School Of Indiana, in Indianapolis, on April 17. The second grade students had been studying international cities, and were familiar with London. It was very fitting for me to read excerpts from Fred & Fiona Flea: The Crown Jewels Caper to the students - an adventure set in London.

Upon arrival, I saw the classroom was covered with photographs of all things London, such as Buckingham Palace; a double-decker bus; Queen Elizabeth II; and the Crown Jewels. There was a model of the Tower of London, too! Even the teacher was English! I felt right at home!

I read the story with different regional accents, and took questions from the students at the end. They had a ton of thoughtful, enquiring questions and comments. We all enjoyed the Q&A session.

When our time was up, the children lined up and asked me to autograph the bookmarks I had given each of them. They made me feel so special!

A few weeks later, I received a delightful letter in the mail. It was from Ryan, one of the students from the International School. He told me how much he had enjoyed the book. Wow! This is what makes the endeavor worthwhile. Thank you Ryan. And, thank you to everyone at the school for welcoming me, and embracing the story of Fred & Fiona.

Author Alison Madden in the Broad Ripple Gazette

Here is a link to the photos capturing the reading event at St. Richard's Episcopal School in Indianapolis on 27th February 2013. Thank you to the second-graders, Ms. Williams, and Ms. Graber at the school, as well to Alan Hague from the Gazette.

http://www.broadripplegazette.com/images/v10n05/author.htm#bookmark21

Writing Workshop - 1st Grade, St. Richard's Episcopal School, Indianapolis

This morning I visited first grade students at St. Richard's Episcopal School. The students have been creating their own books to sell in their own bookstore tomorrow, 7th March 2013. Good luck with your sale boys and girls! What an exciting and stimulating project.

I took students through the life of an author, how to structure a story, good writing tips, and the publishing process. The students worked in pairs to create a framework for a story that they will complete in the classroom. They came up with some exciting and creative ideas for their stories, and were passionate about the challenge. The workshop wrapped up with lots of great questions from young, inquisitive minds. It was so good to see children excited about reading and writing!

Many thanks to Ms. Williams and Ms. Ritter for inviting me to wonderful St. Richard's.

Kindle Edition

Fred & Fiona Flea: The Crown Jewels Caper is available on Kindle. Please click on the link to see it on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Fred-Fiona-Flea-Extraordinaire-ebook/dp/B009447D30/ref=sr_1_sc_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1362495445&sr=8-2-spell&keywords=frd+and+fiona+flea

Fred & Fiona on sale at Bookmamas, Irvington.

Fred & Fiona Flea: The Crown Jewels Caper is now available at Bookmamas - a wonderful independent bookstore in charming Irvington, east side of Indianapolis. Thank you to owner Kathleen for stocking the book.

Visit Bookmamas at 9 Johnson Avenue, Iriving, IN 46219. Tel: 317-375-3715 www.bookmamas.com

Meridian-Kessler Book Sale & Author Signing

Saturday February 16, 2013 was the first Annual Meridian-Kessler Winter Doldrums Book Sale & Author Signing. As local authors we were invited by the Meridian-Kessler Neighborhood Association. Our thanks go to Caroline Farrar for inviting us to a fantastic neighborhood event at the Indianpolis Public Library, 4180 N. College Ave.  Thank you to all the local families who turned out on a cold winter's day. We look forward to next year's event!

St. Richard's Episcopal School, Indianapolis

Thank you to Mrs. Williams, Mrs. Graber, and the second grade students at St. Richard's Episcopal School for welcoming me into their wonderful school on 27th February 2013. We enjoyed a marvelous reading event, and wrapped up the session with hundreds of great questions from the students.

I look forward to returning to school on March 6 to meet the first graders!