ESTEVAN, Sask. — Two southeast Saskatchewan residents have once again collaboarated on a children's novel about a cat named Harry.
The two held a book launch on Oct. 8 at the Estevan Public Library for A Friend for Harry, a sequel to their 2024 book A Home for Harry. Another reading will happen during story time at the Lampman Public Library on Oct. 14 at 10:30 a.m., allowing the author and illustrator to share the story for those up to four years of age.
Ulrich said the sequel introduces a second cat named Ella who Ulrich described as "a bit of a brat".
While they didn't know right away after the first book that they would have a sequel, Ulrich realized after a few months she wanted to work with Blackburn again.
"I just really love the back and forth that we do," said Ulrich. "She takes the manuscript, she does the picture. I go back into the manuscript. I leave stuff out, which I can, because it shows up in the pictures, so I no longer need to say it, and I just focus on when the page turns will be, so there's a little bit of anticipation for younger readers."
For the second book, Ulrich said Blackburn turned to her sister's blue Russian cats for inspiration.
"Every scenario I described for Ella, the bratty cat, in the sequel … Brenda's sister had a picture of her cats doing exactly the same thing, so she didn't have to look too far," said Ulrich.
The illustrations are "gorgeous", said Ulrich, and colours are sharper. Graphic Press took care of the printing, and Ulrich believes the scans were 100 per cent accurate as to the colours Blackburn generates with her pencil crayons.
Blackburn said she was more confident this time. She knew what she was doing, and she knew how to draw Harry and cats in general.
"I really like the personality of this little cat [Ella], so I really enjoyed drawing her," said Blackburn, who hadn't illustrated a book prior to A Home for Harry.
"It was so much help [having experience] and so less intensive as far as practice. I didn't have to practice as much as I did for the first book."
Ulrich is so easy to work with, Blackburn said, with good advice and great ideas, and her stories lend themselves to being reproduced visually.
"I could easily see what she was saying with the words in my head, and I was able to put them on paper," said Blackburn.
The pages are more detailed this time, she said, and the book is is focused more on Ella, while Harry still has an important role.
It's a funny story, she said, and Blackburn predicted everyone is going to fall in love with Ella's spunk.
"If they've had cat experiences, then their cats would have done very similar things to what Ella has done as a kitten. So I think they'll really like Ella. And they'll love Harry, because Harry's such a good and kind cat.
Ulrich believes she sent the manuscript to Blackburn at the end of March, and the illustrations were finished by the end of August.
The response to the first book was "overwhelming", Ulrich said. A close friend of Ulrich's purchased a copy she could read to her cat. Ulrich believes people loved the idea of her partnership with Blackburn, as they had been friends and teaching colleagues for a long time.
"They love the idea of buying a book that's a collaboration for their children. Sometimes it was parents of kids we taught, or kids we taught for their kids."
Copies will eventually be available at Souris Family Pharmacy in Estevan.
