Years ago, my daughter Joey wrote a story about my youngest son, Andy, trying kale in its various forms until finally finding one he liked – it took a LOT of trying. It’s called the Tale of Kale.
It’s a timeless story of trial and error with healthy food that all parents will recognize, and I knew that it was something I would eventually develop and publish, in my “free” time. I’ve never considered myself to be a children’s book author – but just because I hadn’t written a kids book, and couldn’t illustrate wasn’t going to stop me from telling the story, in fact, like with so many other projects, it only inspired and challenged me more!
I’m in the business of meaningful marketing, so I decided it made perfect sense as a Borden Communications Special Project. The Tale of Kale is the kind of marketing our kids and kale need. Whether we like it or not, our kids are constantly being sold “food products” with colourful packaging and ads on TV. We need to show them how to get excited about whole, unprocessed, healthy, and delicious foods.
The Tale of Kale is self-published. Self-publishing the book gave me the speed and control that I wanted for such a personal project that had been sitting on my server for so long. Seeing something from start to finish is one of the most satisfying aspects of our collective work, and we didn’t want to miss anything! Everyone on my team played a role in bringing my son’s character to life and telling the story, and we lucked out by finding the perfect illustrator, actually, she found us online and asked to work with us (and she had never illustrated before – more on that story to come).
The Tale of Kale is a universal experience. I know that other parents will identify with the challenge of feeding their kids healthier choices. Educators will love the lesson of trying new things and having an open mind. And I have a feeling that young readers will celebrate Andy’s stubborn will, mischievous grin, and, maybe, his love of kale.
From my family, (my work family and my own family), to yours, enjoy this ode to trying new things.
You can buy the book from the Borden office directly, or on Amazon.
You can read our full press release here.
Please consider buying copies of The Tale of Kale for yourself, for your friends and family, and for your school library or classroom. Together, let’s stop using the term “picky eater”, and create interest in eating well.
