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Elaine A. Powers, Author

MAKING SCIENCE BOOKS FUN!

Tag: Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers

March 2nd is NATIONAL READ ACROSS AMERICA DAY

March 2nd, National Read Across America Day, is set aside to encourage kids to read. As an author of fun science-based children’s books, I love the idea of children reading books. I’m happy they’re reading, whether it’s one of my brightly illustrated picture books or adventure tales, or any other authors’ books, comic books, graphic novels. I want kids to just read!

Books can be sources of educational material or fantastical flights of imagination. In this world of visual stimulation through cell phones, computers, television and movies, children should be encouraged to use their imaginations, to come up with mental images all their own.

Children don’t have to read alone. Adults can read with them, children can read to other children, and children can read to pets.

photo of author elaine a powers reading to her tortoise, Myrtle
Myrtle, my red-foot tortoise grew so exasperated by being called a ‘turtle’ that she asked me to write her story. Here we are together, just after the book was published.

I enjoy reading to my reptilian family members. Here I am reading Don’t Call Me Turtle! to Myrtle the tortoise, the book she insisted I write after being called ‘Myrtle the Turtle’ one too many times! It’s a rhyming picture book for the young ones about the many differences between tortoises and turtles—so parents and grandparents learn, too. And the rhymes help the knowledge to stick with the kids. I’m inspired to write fun science books, and you’re welcome. ?

Photo of interior book page of Don't Make Me Fly

Enjoy the vivid, colorful illustrations in the science-filled picture book about roadrunners, Don’t Make Me Fly!

image of book cover children's book Curtis Curly-tail Ship of Sneakers

Or a suspense-filled adventure tale like Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers. Curtis does not resist wanderlust very well—and then he has to find his way across the ocean and back home.

I encourage you to take up reading if you haven’t recently. There’s so much to learn and understand in our world. If you’re looking for something new, check out my books here at elaineapowers.com or all of the authors’ books at Lyric Power Publishing LLC.

At the very least, everybody, grab a book and READ! You will grow, and I like to think that’s why we’re here.

Welcome to Tales and Tails!

“Welcome! I’m Elaine A. Powers, the biologist and author of the science books on this website. Welcome to Tales and Tails–a blog written by two adventurers, one human–me–and one small lizard.”

“Hold up! Why are you calling me small?” Curtis asked. “And let’s not forget where your first book came from!”

“Curtis, look at the picture of you on my shoe–you are pretty small, my friend. You’re not an iguana, after all.”

two feet in sneakers, on a beach, with a Bahamian curly-tail lizard on left shoe
The day Curtis and I met on a beach in The Bahamas.

“I may not be an iguana, but I am perfect!”

“I would have to agree! If they removed the word perfect from the dictionary, they would replace it with your picture.”

“Why, Elaine, thank you.”

“You do have a point about the first book, though. Should I tell the readers how it happened?”

“No—I should!” he said. “I tell it much better than you do.”

“Once again, Curtis, you’re right. Let me, instead, welcome and thank our readers for stopping by our new blog, Tales and Tails.”

Curtis and I both hope you enjoy your time here and that you will look around the website. These days, there are fun science books for just about everyone. And, please hop on over to Curtis’s post and he will tell you about how the first book, Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers, came to be.

A second career as a science book author was certainly not on my radar, but when you follow the muse, you never where she will lead you. May your journey be a fun-filled adventure, too!

From both Curtis and me:
Welcome to TALES AND TAILS!

A Big Hello from Curtis!

Welcome to Tales and Tails. I am Curtis Curly-tail, the very special lizard who launched Elaine’s career as the author of science-based children’s books–and now, she’s expanding to include science books for adults! Elaine has asked me to share my point of view and I’m very happy to have a place to write about what it’s like to be a lizard. I may even interview a few of my other reptile friends and tell their stories, too. Stay tuned!

But for now, Elaine has asked me to tell how her first book came to be–and, yes, it is all because of ME! Here is the true story:

When your tail is perfectly curled, you are asked to pose for a lot of pictures. But I, Curtis Curly-tail, wanted MORE—I wanted adventure, communication, friendship . . . STARDOM!

I needed a very special human, one who could see AND hear me. And there she finally was! Sitting on the beach, near my den! I scampered over to her and her friends. Out came the cameras. I posed for a few typical shots—turning this way and that, sunlight glinting off my scales, showing off my perfectly-curled tail to my best advantage.

They were smitten! I climbed onto my new friend’s sneaker and looked up at her. Using a mind-meld technique (for over two hours, I might add) I was able to send her one of my adventures! And she “got” it!

I didn’t go back with her to the ship—I’d been there and done that—but I knew when she got back to her cabin, being a writer, that she would have to sit and type up my story.

Several months later, a mother and child sat near my den on a blanket, under an umbrella. She was reading a children’s book to her young child. It was my story! There I was on the cover of the book, entitled Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers.

I jumped for joy! My dream had come true! I would be famous! Curly-tails would make way for me when I cruised the beach. I would finally find my mate! My photos would be enlarged to poster-sized and hang in children’s bedrooms. Maybe they would rename Warderick Wells Cay after me!

~ “Excuse me. Curtis?” Elaine butted into my fantasies.
“Elaine! This is my part of the blog!”
~ “I know, but you were getting carried away. You actually are pretty famous, but they will never rename the cay after you. Isn’t having your own You Tube channel pretty spectacular?”
“It is!”
~ “And isn’t being a lizard that dictates his thoughts to a human who can hear him pretty awesome?”
“Yes, Elaine.”
~ “Okay, then, my little friend, let’s wrap this up.”
“I will. You can go now.”
~ “I sure can.”

Humans are so bossy! Oops, sorry. I didn’t mean every human.

Welcome to Tales and Tails, where we focus on reptiles, fun and adventure—oh, and science books, too. Of course!

It’s That Time of the Year–Weather is in the News! by Curtis Curly-tail Lizard

Illustration of Curtis on boat looking at a sneaker
Here’s me in Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers. This book started my career as a book-inspirer, writer and video performer. I must say that I have a lot to be thankful for! Illustration by Arthur Winstanley.  Book designed by Nora Miller.

Hello, everyone! I’m Curtis Curly-tail Lizard and every year, all of us in The Bahamas worry about hurricane season. I wrote here before about Hurricane Dorian, which hit the northern part of my country, causing a lot of damage. Of course, this the time of the year, weather is newsworthy in many places–like all the terrible fires now burning in California.  For my friend, Elaine, in Arizona, it’s the monsoon season. It amazes me that Elaine hopes for monsoon rains, while we Warderick Wellians hope the hurricanes will avoid us!

June 1 marked the official hurricane season start in the Atlantic Ocean, which includes the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. Of course, weather doesn’t always abide by the calendar, as Elaine has mentioned about Southern Arizona’s 2020 monsoon season. It never started. Everything is very dry there and the heat has been rather extreme. Elaine’s prickly pear cactus plants are drying up. It’s pretty bad when cactus dry up.

In the Sonoran Desert, the air rises upward due to the hot temperatures warming the ground. This creates a vacuum that can pull in moisture-containing winds from the west, including air from Baja California in the Pacific. Monsoon rains are powerful and can cause flash floods, lightning strikes can ignite fires, and winds can knock down trees and poles. They also create microbursts, which are like tiny tornadoes. But, after the heat of May and June, the refreshing rains allow the cacti to rehydrate, wildflowers to bloom, ocotillo to produce leaves. Animals, from insects to mammals, increase their activity. It is normally a time of fun and frolicking. The water is much needed by the plants and animals in the desert and much missed this year. Elaine and her friends are all still hoping the rains will come.

I hope you’ll stop by and visit me at my YouTube channel, Curtis Curly-tail Speaks. And I’m very excited to tell you that a new book will be added to the Curtis Curly-tail collection very soon. It’s about my experiences with the yiggies on Beach Cay. What’s a yiggie? You’ll soon find out in Curtis Curly-tail is Blown Away! I’m so excited and I’ll be sure to let you know when it goes on sale!

I hope you’re enjoying the summer weather, wherever you are. Take care of yourselves and each other out there! I sure am on Warderick Wells!

It’s New Tech Time–Elaine A. Powers Will Now Visit Your Classroom via Video Conferencing

Image courtesy of Alexandra_Koch from Pixabay

Hello, everyone!

It’s me, Curtis Curly-tail! You know me as the perfect curly-tail lizard from the Bahamas, who inspired Elaine A. Powers to write her very first children’s science book (fun science adventure tale, that is) called, most appropriately, Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers. Who knew Elaine would go on to write 25 children’s science books? Not me! But there was a need to make learning science fun and she grabbed the moment and ran with it. I am so proud of her!

Then she asked me to write for her blog and star on her YouTube channel, as well. What could I say? Who doesn’t want to be famous? I do have a bit of the star-strut going on at the beach near my home on Warderick Wells. And the girl curly-tail lizards–well, they get giddy and giggly when they see me. Someone’s gotta be that guy and it may as well be me.

After I started Elaine on her career as an author, I sent her out visiting schools and organizational meetings, teaching about us wonderful reptiles. She brought iguanas, tortoises and turtles and they were always a smashing hit! However, with the virus pandemic, Elaine hasn’t been able to take her scaled friends out and all of them are really bummed. Especially, Blue, the rock iguana. (The big guy is pictured with Elaine below.) He loved the attention he got and misses the people he was meeting. Now, schools are closed and Elaine and her reptile family are all stuck at home.

photograph of Elaine A Powers with her large rock iguana, Blue
Elaine A. Powers and her big buddy, Blue, a rock iguana hybrid.

Animals have many ways of communicating, and humans don’t communicate like we do. You must use electronic technology over distances. I think that’s a decent alternative. I myself am very familiar with photography, posing for all the tourists as I do on the beach. This new electronic technology allows for “live” images–you can see each other in real time! Much more amazing than a photo, unless the photo is of me, of course! And, you can hear your voices, too. It’s called video conferencing, and a group, a crowd (that’s a collective noun) of humans, can communicate simultaneously. Very impressive.

Once I learned about video conferencing, I told Elaine, “You have to do this! You can’t meet with them in person now, but you can talk to them online. You can teach about the reptiles and show the iguanas and tortoises to classrooms or during meetings.”

She said, “But the people won’t be able to touch the reptiles. And Blue loved that!”

“I know. So far, I can’t figure that one out. But this isn’t going to last forever. Someday, you’ll be out and about again. In the meantime, people need to know all about us reptiles. We love it when people learn about and understand us. Come on, Elaine–say yes! You are needed! And Blue can ham it up for the camera.”

“Well, I guess we could give it a try.”

“That’s the spirit! It’ll be fun, just like your books!”

So, my friends, if you’re an educator, or have an interest in reptiles, you can talk to Elaine about speaking to your classroom or group. You will also learn about the books she has written and the incredible workbooks and activity sheets from Lyric Power Publishing, LLC. Elaine’s heart and mind are all about making science education fun. Contact her today to spice things up in the science curriculum via video conferencing.

We must all adapt these days. And, don’t forget about us very interesting reptiles! Contact Elaine through her website, www.elaineapowers.com today! Or at www.lyricpower.net, to schedule an online get-together with Elaine and Blue and Myrtle and Calliope and Rango and Cantata and Chile and Turquoise and–well, you get the picture! Or, you will!

After the exciting session from the Powers home, stop by and see me at Curtis Curly-tail Speaks on YouTube. You can learn a lot about reptiles from me, too. That’s my job and I’m stickin’ to it!

Adventure I Must! says Curtis Curly-tail

Living on a Caribbean island beach is wonderful (except for dive-bombing seagulls looking for a snack) but some days I do get bored. I love watching people come ashore from their boats, but when they leave, I wonder where the boat is going. Where do those tourists come from? Do they have an island, too?

Illustration of a green curly-tail lizard on yellow beach
“Shoes on the beach! Now’s my chance!”

One day my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to find out for myself. I crept into a sneaker on the beach and traveled with its owner to the big city, delighting in the many sights and sounds a small cay doesn’t have.

Eventually, though, I wanted to go home. It didn’t take me long to realize that getting onto a tourist boat from my beach was much easier than catching a ride home would be. How would I find a boat going to Warderick Wells Cay and get on it? And I had no idea how I would cross the water between the boat and my beach again. I had acted without thinking–but I also knew I had to try to find my way home.

You can find out what happened in Curtis Curly-tail and the Ship of Sneakers, which is Elaine’s first book (inspired by me), published by Lyric Power Publishing and available at Amazon.com.

About

Elaine A. Powers, Author

making science fun!

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© 2021 ELAINE A. POWERS, TUCSON, ARIZONA