Mark Mathias writes:
“In the beginning was Love. And Love was good. But Love was alone, and with nothing to hold together, Love had nothing to do.”
These are the first words of “In the Beginning: A Love Story.” The children’s book was created by longtime Westporters Michael Hendricks and Rebecca Ross.
They envisions the universe and everything in it – including all of us – as we might be seen by Love.
The story assures children from as soon as they understand words that love is the truest thing about them and that they are loved unconditionally — even when they make mistakes, or occasionally make hurtful choices.
Ross — the artist — brings the message to life with illustrations that put a face and personality to the character of Love, as well as to little hearts that don’t always quite live up to their purpose. Her images show that nothing the little hearts do, or don’t do, ever stops them from being hearts.
Hendricks is the author of 2 mystery novels. He has lived in Connecticut for over 30, years, mostly in Westport.
Michael Hendricks
He has noticed that “whenever people share the most important things in their lives, it doesn’t take long before love comes up. So how can love be so important to individuals and so hard to find in the world?
“And if that’s confusing to me, how much more confusing must it be to children? And how on earth do you talk about something like that with a small child? This book is designed to help children understand how very important love is.”
Rebecca Ross
Ross — also a longtime Westport resident — is a painter. This is her first children’s book.
She is most proud, she says, of “all my initial mess-ups. I think that I redrew, re-painted and re-designed every page at least 3 times. And every time the page was way better than the previous. I learned so much, and became a better painter.“
The book is launched via a Kickstarter campaign. The online fundraising platform chose it as a “Project We Love.” Click here to support the campaign.
Books are expected to ship in late summer.
