Inspector Dewey on Tour {+ Giveaway}

It’s a pleasure to be participating in author Kristen Heimerl’s iRead Book Tour for the release of her children’s book, INSPECTOR DEWEY.

Kristen is joining us today to talk about her ‘Book Project’ and has an awesome giveaway going on during her tour. In addition, I’ll share my thoughts on this delightful book illustrated by Irene Bofill. Please see the end of the post for more giveaway details.

Here’s a description of INSPECTOR DEWEY:

My name is Dewey--Inspector Dewey.
        I live in the big green house on Hampshire Avenue with my family: Thumper, Lily, and Anna. I am the Big Cat—responsible for keeping everyone safe and in order. I do this quite well, in spite of the fact that managing my family is like, well, herding cats!
        Mostly our life is peaceful. But one night it wasn’t. That was the night the bad guy showed up on our block. Of course, I knew exactly how to outsmart the outlaw, but—miserable mullet!—would Anna and the police understand my instructions?
        To find out how the adventure ended, you’ll have to read my book. But I’ll give you a hint: there’s a reason I’m called Inspector Dewey.

Fifty percent of the profits from the sale of this book will fund veterinary care for pets whose families are in financial need, so that the animals can remain in their homes and out of the shelter system.

BECAUSE PETS BELONG WITH THEIR PEOPLE™. To learn more, visit threenorwegians.com

INSPECTOR DEWEY is available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Please join me now in giving Kristen a warm welcoming as she talks about ‘My Book Project: Now This is Joy – Child’s Play.’ Welcome, Kristen.

The beautiful thing about creating a children’s book for a professional marketer is just that: you get to create it and bring it to market. This has meant lots of different types of activities over the past two years, but what I really geek-out over is the super-silly, creative stuff—the stuff I left behind as a child.

Case in point: Dewey’s Detective Kit. I’m a full-grown woman with not a lot of patience. It never occurred to me that painstakingly compiling detective-themed activities into a downloadable kit for kids would bring so much joy.

It was a zone-making moment. Sure, I included the standards: top-secret door signs, official name badges, Find-the-Fishy puzzles, Pin-the-Tuna-on-the-Tree game instructions, and the like. But the super fun? Creating stuff from scratch! Like Write a Mystery!, Feline Fun Facts, and Dewey’s signature: Create Your Own Fishy Phrases. Add in an invisible ink recipe, top-secret snack-making, a playlist of famous detective-themed tracks—and OMG! I thought my gut would explode with glee!

I know I’m not alone in my seemingly immature interest because my (adult) illustrator and designer shared this funky fervor when I turned the content over to them to add their magic to the mix.

What is it about becoming a child—if only for a moment—that’s so euphoric? It happened again recently while I was working with a costumer to discuss the creation of an Inspector Dewey mascot for events. Hoodie or covered head piece? Faux fur or fluffy fabric? What will kids find most approachable? What characteristics are key to bring the Dewster to life? Oh my! I haven’t had so much fun with a costume since my mom and I conceptualized my Big Fig Newton guy ensemble for a horse show costume class riding my pony, Goober, when I was ten.

Marketing Inspector Dewey has given me complete creative freedom to engage in creative child’s play—in a way that hasn’t caused my family or friends to raise their brow and suggest a quick trip to the mental health clinic. Weeeeeeee! I think I’d better get started on the second book soon!

Kristen, thanks so much for joining us today and sharing this insight into creating INSPECTOR DEWEY. It sounds like you had tons of fun. I think in this stressful life we lead it would be good for all of us (adults) to be a kid again even if it is only for a few minutes at a time.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Kristen, here’s a bit of background on her.

Author Kristen Heimerl

Marketing Officer, Strategy Expert, Innovator and Brand Builder, Kristen’s business career spans 20+ years serving the biggest brands in industry and the biggest hearts of start-ups and entrepreneurs. Kristen revels in bringing compelling products and services to life and helping leaders and individuals with big dreams realize their big goals.

Kristen’s life joys include her 2+ year obsession creating the most beautiful self-published picture book possible, the breathtaking forests and lakes of her Minnesota birthplace, the family that really does love her no matter what, and her three magnificent Norwegian Forest Cats who together, with Kristen, helped catch the bad guy on their block that inspired her upcoming book (stake out and high speed chase included!)

She holds a master of science in eCommerce from Carnegie Mellon University, an MBA from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management, and a BA from the University of St. Thomas. As the great transformer in her life, Kristen supports others’ education and literacy as an adjunct professor of business and strategy and, more recently, through her children’s book, INSPECTOR DEWEY (Available September 2015).

Kristen’s site for her work “Inspector Dewey” premiered on May 31st. In addition, you can read more about Kristen’s work at threenorwegians.com.

For more about Kristen and her writing, visit her website and connect with her on Facebook Author and Facebook Inspector Dewey.

You can also find out more about Kristen and Inspector Dewey by visiting the following blogs participating in her tour:

Aug 31 - Library of Clean Reads - review / giveaway
Aug 31 - Christy's Cozy Corners - review / giveaway
Aug 31 - Tragically Dull Adventures of an Almost Librarian - review
Sept 1 -  View from the Birdhouse - review / giveaway
Sept 2 -  A Mama's Corner of the World - review / giveaway
Sept 3 -  The Cheshire Cat's Looking Glass - review / giveaway
Sept 4 -  Bound 4 Escape - review / giveaway
Sept 7 - Tales of the Marvelous - review / guest post
Sept 8 - #redhead.with.book - review / giveaway
Sept 9 - Roughseasinthemed - review / author interview / giveaway
Sept 10 - Collecting Moments - review / author interview
Sept 11 - A Splendid Messy Life - review / giveaway
Sept 14 - Kimber Leigh Writes - review / giveaway
Sept 15 - Book Loving Hippo - review / guest post / giveaway
Sept 16 - Bookworm for Kids - review / giveaway
Sept 17 - Tea and a Book - review / author interview
Sept 18 - Thoughts in Progress - review / guest post / giveaway
Sept 21 - Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers - review / giveaway
Sept 22 - Experiencing Parenthood - review
Sept 23 - Working Mommy Journal - review / giveaway
Sept 24 - Mochas, Mysteries and Meows - review / author interview / giveaway
Sept 25 - Create With Joy - review / giveaway
Sept 25 - JBronder Book Reviews - review / guest post
Sept 26 - Writers and Authors - review
Sept 28 - One Frugal Girl - review / author interview / giveaway
Sept 29 -  Just One More Chapter - review
Sept 30 - Jessica Cassidy - review / author interview / giveaway
Oct 1 - Mrs. Mommy Booknerd's Book Reviews - review
Oct 1 - The Pen and Muse Book Reviews - review / author interview / giveaway
Oct 2 - Jorie Loves a Story - review / guest post
Oct 2 - Books, Movies, Reviews. Oh my! - review

My thoughts on INSPECTOR DEWEY:

Sometimes finding the right words to describe a children’s story book can be difficult. Other times it takes only one word – aah! That’s the case when you read INSPECTOR DEWEY by Kristen Heimerl.

The amazing illustrations by Irene Bofill bring this charming cat and his family to life. The beautiful drawings will delight children, as well as adults, as Dewey goes on his adventure. The rich details of the illustrations makes you want to reach out and pat the cats.

The enchanting tale of this feline will bring smiles, surprise and laughter to youngsters of all ages. Readers (and listeners) will quickly be drawn into the antics of Dewey and his feline friends, Thumper and Lily, along with their human, Anna.

You don’t have to be a cat lover to enjoy this charming tale. However, those with cats can appreciate Dewey’s humor, grace and protective instinct. This delightful book shares a tale of mystery and suspense with youngsters in ways that doesn’t involve nightmarish visions.

INSPECTOR DEWEY will capture hearts and have readers clamoring for more.

Inspector Dewey by Kristen Heimerl, Illustrated by Irene Bofill, Orange Frazer Press, @2015, ISBN: 978-1939710277, Hardcover, 32 Pages 

FTC Full Disclosure – A copy of this book was sent to me as part of the author’s virtual book tour in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review. The thoughts are completely my own and given honestly and freely.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS: ​
 
This giveaway is from the author’s virtual book tour and includes the following items:

* 1 of 10 copies of Inspector Dewey (International) or
* 1 of (4) $20 Amazon gift cards (international) or
* 5 books to the literacy nonprofit, library or school of your choice (USA only) or
* $100 payable for vet visit for family/pet in need (USA only).

To enter the giveaway, just click on the Rafflecopter widget below and follow the instructions. The widget may take a few seconds to load so please be patient. If the widget doesn’t load, visit the author’s iRead Book Tour page.

Thanks so much for stopping by today during Kristen’s visit. Do you have a cat that as any of Inspector Dewey’s traits? What do you think about just ‘being a kid’ again for short periods of time? 

a Rafflecopter giveaway