Amoeba Hop

Book by Lavin, Christine

Christine Lavin has been a major force in the contemporary music world for two decades with 27 albums to her credit, 14 of them solo. With the release of her picturebook, 'Amoeba Hop', fans who have longed for ‘something for their kids’ will not be disappointed. What they will be is delighted by seeing Christine’s imaginative world come alive. "I wrote the song in the early 1980s, but it was inspired by my first look into a microscope in Mr. Kristoph's 9th grade biology class," recalls Christine. "Classmate Betty Ann Murphy brought a bucket of swamp water into the classroom and when I looked at what was going on down there, I was stupefied! That was in 1967, so it took quite a while for the song to morph past the incubation stage (and amazing to me that I remember the details so vividly. But I do!). If I had gotten that peek into one-celled goings-on earlier, maybe today I'd be a scientist and not a songwriter..." 'Amoeba Hop' continues to be one of the most requested songs at her concerts from both young people and adults.

"Over the years, I’ve received cards, drawings and letters from teachers and elementary school students who have been inspired by the song," remarks Christine.

Christine has appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America, NBC’s The Today Show, and was featured on CBS’s Sunday Morning, CNN, and NPR’s Weekend Edition. She currently guest hosts Sunday Breakfast on WFUV public radio in NYC. Christine has won multiple music awards including five ASCAP Composer Awards and the NYC Singer/Songwriter of 2001 (Backstage Magazine). Betsy Franco Feeney is an award-winning illustrator working in commercial art for over twenty-five years. Her work has been described as "meticulously detailed (with) rare humor and imagination" (Kirkus Reviews). With her Yorkie puppy by her side (or at her feet, or on her lap), Betsy enjoys working in her home studio just outside of New York City. As one of Christine’s biggest fans, she is now living a dream come true with their collaboration in the picture book, 'Amoeba Hop'. Her daughter, Kathryn, was the model for the little girl while Betsy’s first dog, Fred, is the little girl’s curious canine companion. Kathryn appears in the appendix of the book peering through a microscope.

Betsy’s earlier books were illustrated using watercolors. Her more recent titles were painted in Photoshop with a Macintosh computer. 'Amoeba Hop' marks her first book where she combines computer skills with water soluable oil paintings. The results have been striking; rich in color with ‘first sketch’ liveliness. Her great love of children’s book art is brought vividly to life in front of the appreciative eyes of students in numerous elementary schools. Visiting schools is one of the most rewarding parts of her career. Graduating from the Fashion Institute of Technology with honors, Betsy continued her studies at the School of Visual Arts. Clients include: Charles Scribners Sons, IBM, Harcourt Brace, McGraw Hill, Berkley Publishing Group, General Foods,  Ballantine Books (a division of Random House),  Orange and Rockland Utilities, Women's Day Magazine,  Robin & Adler Books,  Joshua Morris Publishing,  Longmeadow Press,  Hudson Valley Children's Museum,  Historical Society of Rockland, and Schlott Realtors.