Saskatchewan Author Pens Childrens Books with Provincial Twist

December 12, 2021

2 minutes read

Melanie Larson, who lives on a farm with her husband and three children near Simmie, Saskatchewan, came up with the idea after teaching her son to count. “My oldest child was learning to count to 50 and I could not find a book anywhere to help with that. This is why I created my first book in 2018. Count Them! 50 Tractor Troubles: A Counting, Spelling and Safety Book helps with counting, and also uses real-life tractor “fail” pictures.”

After receiving great feedback, “kids and adults love to pour over the book and remark on all the crazy tractor pictures,” Larson shared, she decided to translate Count Them! to both French and German.

But, not stopping at just one book, since 2018, she has released other books in the Tractor Troubles series including The Alphabet Construction Troubles: A to Z Upper and Lower Case Letters and The Colours in Tractor Troubles.

Her first illustrated book in the Adventures of the Barnyard Boys series, The Day I Lost my Bear in Cypress Hills, was based on a real-life incident when Larson and her family were visiting Cypress Hills. The book follows the three brothers as they have a fun-filled day in Cypress Hills Provincial Park until one of the boys loses his precious bear.

Fast forward to June 2021, Larson has now released her fifth book called The Day I Discovered a Dinosaur Bone?! Adventures of the Barnyard Boys Book 2. This book follows three brothers that want to find a dinosaur bone in places throughout Saskatchewan. Eventually, they find something extremely old and take it to a paleontologist at one of Saskatchewan’s dinosaur museums to find out exactly what it is. This book also includes educational facts about dinosaur fossils found in Saskatchewan.

Larson, who also works as an Environmental Consultant, hopes to continue her love of nature, learning, and writing for years to come. “Right now, I love writing for my children and hope that my books become a favourite for other children too. Growing up, I spent as much time as possible outside and hope to share this love with my children, that’s why I try to incorporate outdoor themes in my books,” she said.

For anyone looking for the perfect holiday gift, Larson’s books are sold at vendors throughout Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba. They are also available on her website www.mlarsonbooks.com, Chapters and Amazon.