Calling all parents and teachers… Artist, author, and publisher, Vlasta Diamant, has created unique books that hold multi-media opportunity. Originally, conceived as a puppet play, Once Upon Skates, is a modern fairy-tale play-script that sprang from the author’s childhood dream of skating. The “Introduction” suggests different ways and environments for performing the play: at home, as a family activity, or in school, as a student performance, with or without puppets, or a combination of both. The staging invites endless creativity and all three resources are vital: the book (the final version), the animated video, and the website.

Vlasta also wrote “This Really Happened” which answers kids’ inevitable question, when told a story–Did this really happen? Just as the stories matured in the author’s memory and psyche, so did her insight into animals’ nature–emotions, behavior, and will. It is a safari in a common, urban environment. The author’s gentle, caring approach expresses itself in humor and references, which can be appreciated by adults, while children enjoy the narrative itself. That’s how This Really Happened spans a wide audience of animal lovers.

Both Vlasta Diamant’s books have multi-media forms. Use the multiple forms for interactive teaching and activity for your children. They will learn about animals, ice skating, and following their dreams.

Vlasta Diamant is an artist, author and a publisher. Her extensive website, www.ApplebiteWorks.com, shows her work in different media. She has just finished a group of four interviews about This Really Happened. This Really Happened is Vlasta Diamant’s second children’s book and can be purchased on her website www.ThisReallyHappened.net and on amazon.com.