To the Pool with Mama

It is Friday, and John J. and Mama are off to the pool. Bathing suit and towel are carefully stowed in a backpack.

To the Pool with Mama is told in the first person by John J. as he experiences the joys and wonders of a trip to a large pool. The showers are bigger and different than the ones at home. There are cubbyholes to hide in and heavy doors that he needs help to push open.

In the baby pool are many toys, and the water is just the right height for a toddler to splash and roll around in. Water is great fun to play in, but it is important for John J. and his friend Elise to remember that water belongs in the pool, not on the deck or each other's heads!

Experience the thrill of a small child at all the new sensations found at the swimming pool: the noise of many children, the feel of water and the warm hair dryer, even the texture of the rough, non-slip floors.

Going to the pool is tiring, and at the end of the day a happy, snuggly little boy is carried home, warm and safe in the arms of Mama.

Sue Farrell was born and raised on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. After earning an honors degree in journalism, Sue's career in writing and public relations took her to the Northwest Territories and later to Grande Prairie, Alberta.

Robin Baird Lewis has worked for over twenty-five years as an artist, freelance designer and illustrator. She has received international acclaim for "Red is Best" (1982), "Big or Little?" (1983) and "Steven's Baseball Mitt" (1992).

Sue and Robin collaborated on "To the Post Office with Mama" (1994), which tells of John J.'s first adventure out with Mama.