After 10 seasons managing the New Albany Farmers Market, our own Kristina Jenny has transitioned her talents from the farm to the page and has authored her first book, Summer at 4 Steps Way. Before moving to New Albany in 2006, Kristina and her husband, Pete Jenny, traveled the country, moving wherever Pete’s job took them. From San Diego and Montreal to Virginia and Minnesota, and finally from Georgia to Ohio, the Jenny family decided they needed a permanent place to establish their family. And while New Albany was the perfect place for their long-term home, you can find Kristina and the kids all summer long at their beloved cabin in the Northwoods of Wisconsin.
While out at the cabin many years ago, the Jenny children became concerned about how the squirrels, chipmunks and mice were faring without the family during the cold Northwoods winters. To ease their minds, Kristina began telling stories of how their woodland friends were surviving the cold and of their many adventures and activities. In 2016, Kristina began to write down her tales. The stories describe the adventures of three woodland friends, a chipmunk, a squirrel and a mouse, and all the hijinks they got into during the four seasons of the year. Like any great story, Kristina wove in life lessons on topics such as showing kindness, listening to others and lessons of forgiveness and sharing. These lessons are summed up at the close of each story under the Talking Points section.
After writing a few stories, Kristina decided illustrations would help to bring the characters and their stories to life. She contacted her sister-in-law, Marisa, who had been drawing for a few years, and their partnership blossomed alongside the stories.
“We not only married brothers, but we were first sorority sisters at Valparaiso University,” says Kristina. “We both had the time, talent and a love of bringing adventure to life. I am very proud of our work. It’s been a leap of faith and quite fun to do this together.”
But it was time for the stories of the chipmunk, squirrel and mouse to leave the Jenny summer home and make their way into others’ home libraries, too.
“It is our hope that the stories resonate with the whole family. I always loved cuddling up and reading to my kids,” Kristina says. “The biggest compliment a book can get is to be requested at reading time, and when one finds a child picking it up on their own, paging through and eventually reading the story, that is what we hope for these stories.”
Pick up a copy of Summer at 4 Steps Way by Kristina Jenny, the first of a four-part series, and jump into nature with a talented local author. It is available in print at local bookstores including Cover to Cover in Columbus, The Book Loft of German Village, The Gramercy New Albany and Readers’ Garden Book Store in Granville and on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. It is available in digital format through iTunes, Google Play, Amazon and Barnes & Noble. To learn more about Kristina Jenny and future book releases, follow on Instagram or Facebook @4stepsway.
Excerpt from Summer at 4 Steps Way
“... Mister Chipmunk smiles with his eyes as he realizes his good fortune – someone has dropped a red raspberry right at his door! What luck! Over the next few mornings, Mister Chipmunk opens his front door to find a single red raspberry on his step. It stops feeling like a lucky accident. Rather than someone dropping a red raspberry, it feels more like someone is placing the fruit at his door. Now it seems more like the setting of a trap. Mister Chipmunk quickly decides he needs to investigate who or what is trying to bait him.”
