A little less than two years ago, Vicki Toups Sheaffer (Author) and Kristie Kaiser Frudden (Illustrator) collaborated on their first children's board book. This was also the first board board we (Long Overdue Books) ever edited, designed, and published. New territory for all of us!
The book was called Oh Mother How Funny, and was dedicated to Vicki's first grandson, Jack.
Fast forward to late spring/early summer of 2022 and there was a new children's board book in the works. This time it was Kristie with the exciting family update. With the birth of her 1st grandchild (Olivia Rose), Kristie wanted to create a story about baby's summer adventures in and around a beautiful "clear lake."
Kristie and Vicki both live in Minnesota -- the land of 10,000 clear lakes -- but the inspiration for this book actually came from the picturesque town of Clear Lake, Iowa. Clear Lake is home to a big, beautiful lake where Kristie and her husband (Bill) and generations of their family have enjoyed many a summer day. Now the delights of lake life will be shared with their granddaughter.
Kristie magically brought the lake to life through the use of bright watercolors and sunny visuals. Vicki paired the illustrations with a wonderfully flowing story written in stanzas with a 2 & 4 rhyme scheme. Our Creative Director (Annie Leue) brought it all together with front and back cover design, interior page design, and the perfect font choice/placement throughout.
The result? Kristie and Vicki's second book!
So... is the book ready to order? Pre-Order?
Short answer - We sold out of the first run at the Art Fair and are now printing 500 more copies. But that will take 5-8 weeks, so we are in the pre-order stage until Labor Day (2022).
Longer answer - Our initial goal was to have a first one available for Kristie's booth at the Minnehaha Falls Art Fair (July 15 - 17th). This was a really fast turnaround time, but Pint Size Productions (who we worked with on the first book) was great to work with, awesome customer service, they helped us sprint and print the initial copies for the Art Fair.
Our next print is the wide release (500 copies) which takes much longer to assemble and ship. We're projecting 5-8 weeks for the whole process -- hoping it ends up being 5--6 -- so projecting Labor Day time frame just to be safe.
How to secure your copy
If you're comfortable pre-ordering and waiting until September, we've added the pre-order page right here in the Long Overdue Bookstore. You can also click on this image below and it'll take you right there.
Shipping vs. Pick-up - If you know Vicki or Kristie or you're local to the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, we have a pick-up option available. At checkout, when entering your address, just put the zip code 55110 instead of your zip code. Hit continue and it'll give you the option to pick-up or ship. If you forget this step or end up getting charged for shipping, please email us (library@longoverduestories.com) and we'll get you a refund ASAP.
And if you'd like to order but would prefer to wait until the books are printed or it's closer to September, totally understand. Same thing as above, just email us at library@longoverduestories.com and we'll add you to a reserve copy list.
Excited to share this second book with you! As for what's next with our dynamic duo from Minnesota - Oh Baby It’s a Clear Lake is the second in a planned series of “Oh” books (Oh Mother How Funny. Oh Baby It's a Clear Lake).
"It’s exciting to explore the special relation
ships within family and friend groups, especially as 'littles' are added to the next generation," Vicki said, "but we also appreciate being surprised by unexpected inspiration. There could be a story developing around a character that comes to life on Kristie’s canvas!"
