Author and Veteran Educator Focuses on Importance of Nurturing Children in School
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Young Tommy disappears during a field trip, Jeffrey risks electrocution by urination and Brenna struggles to learn how to read. It’s all in a day’s work for a first-year teacher in the tiny town of Karola in the 1970s. In this tale of heartwarming classroom adventures in rural Kansas, Author Linda Born’s new novel, The Children Are Tender (Ambassador International; March 2013; $14.99, paperback), addresses the importance of childhood education and emotional development while also focusing on issues of tolerance, forgiveness, and love.
First year teacher, Lydia Birn quickly learns that there are challenges to being an elementary school teacher. With the support of her husband, Farmer John, and her two colleagues, Abby and Ruth, Lydia must rely on her faith in God as she navigates the emotional needs of children as well as her own personal life. “I spent 22 years as a first grade teacher which gave me a wealth of material for this novel,” says Born. “The kids can make you want to laugh and cry, which is very much reality for any elementary teacher.” In The Children Are Tender a sense of place and community lies at the heart of the story making the imaginary town of Karola, Kansas as important as the characters themselves.
Although not a biography, Born draws from many of her own life experiences in the novel. She based the character of Ruby Mae on her mother, Anna Ruth Williamson, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2004 and inspired Born’s first book, My Mom Has Alzheimer’s.
About the Author: Linda Born worked for twenty-two years as a first grade teacher and implemented a special program for children with reading challenges. She is a farm wife and the primary caregiver for her mother, who has dementia. Linda lives in a yellow farmhouse in Kansas with her husband, John.
To learn more about the author and her new book, The Children Are Tender, visit http://lindaborn.com. For interview requests please contact publicist Alison Storm at [email protected] .
