Children gathered around to hear Jennifer Lane read "Yes! You Can!: An Iknowicant Tale" during a storybook hour at McDonald's Monday afternoon.
Lane was promoting the newest book she illustrated. She also will be holding readings at several elementary schools in the area this month and next.
She just received the book Feb. 9.
She said it was like Christmas when she received it.
"I haven't put it down," Lane said. "I'm so excited. I can't believe I did something like this."
The book, written by Shannon Bates, features a lovable little creature named Robootso. It combines the lessons found in children's classics like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “The Little Engine That Could.” The book is about an "Iknowicant" who believes he can, and should, build a house.
His fellow Iknowicants try to shout him down, keep him in line and convince him that living in the trees, as they have done forever, is good enough. Robootso is no sheep, though, and soon enough, he is working on his home, showing the other Iknowicants that believing he can is more rewarding than feeling as though he can’t.
Bates and Lane say their story was inspired by people like this year’s presidential candidates.
“The book is really inspired by a desire to encourage kids and adults to stop making excuses for their situations and at least try to do something about changing them,” said Bates. “In this day of political change, we sometimes have to try to change things for ourselves and not just accept things. We have to get out and make an effort.”
Lane said she was inspired to illustrate the book for similar reasons.
“What kind of a parent would I be if I didn’t live this lesson?” she asked. “I believe that kids can be anything they want.”
The book teaches such things as how being unique can build leadership skills, how to build confidence, showing kids that naysayers are often just afraid, how rewarding self-belief can be and the power of positive thinking.
It took about eight months to complete the process of creating the book, with it taking about three months for Lane to create the illustrations.
Lane, mother of two, has had her art featured at a gallery at Wichita State University, in Final Friday events in Wichita and at Robin's, enjoyed working on the book.
"This was just something brand new," she said. "It was a learning experience and that was probably the most fun about it," she said. "You can just be so creative with a children's book."
She is looking forward to seeing the kids' reactions as she takes it to the schools.
"You never know what kind of questions you're going to get from kids," she said. "That is always fun. Hopefully some little one will get an idea I can do something because that is the whole premise of the book – hard work and perserverance gets you what you want. The one thing I want to tell all these kids is everyone has a talent."
The schools also will be getting a copy of the book, courtesy of McDonald's.
The book also is available on amazon.com.
Lane, who was born in Augusta, received a liberal arts degree from Butler Community College.
Besides enjoying time with her family, exercising, and boating, she is continuously working on new paintings.
She said she and Bates have a couple of other ideas for children's books.
El Dorado, Kan. —
