FORT FRANCES -- According to author Nicole Thomson, writing her first children’s book was a labour of love.
Thomson, who is an educator originally from Fort Frances now living in Geraldton, will be doing a book reading at the Fort Frances Public Library Technology Centre on Thursday.
Her book titled, “The Little Things: Finding Gratitude in Life’s Simple Moments” was released last year.
Thomson said on her website that she wrote the book to “help children understand what gratitude is, and why it’s important to practice it.” Thompson added it would be good to teach gratitude in schools, “we live in a world where it's more important than ever to slow down and appreciate the little things we have to cherish.”
She said feedback from parents and teachers is that her book is a bedtime favourite.
The two children in the book represent her own. “Through the cycle of gratitude, they’ll see that the more thankful we are for the good things in our lives, the more we will have to be thankful for,” she wrote. “And it’s the little things that make a big difference.”
Thomson said while she moved away four years ago, Fort Frances "is still very much home to me and a big part of my life."
One reason for her trip home was to attend the celebration of life of her grandfather who passed away at 100 years of age she said. "It kind worked out all my nieces and nephews and everything, get to come and see me read my book that they’ve all received as gifts."
As a kindergarten teacher and a mother of young kids, Thomson said she has a little obsession with children’s books. "I have thousands of books in my garage in bins that used to be in my classrooms the kids bedrooms and they follow me around everywhere I move... One day I thought to myself, I can write one of these."
For now, writing books is a fun part-time side gig but Thomson said she wants to turn the book into a series. "Maybe one day down the road, you know, I’ll be a full-time author instead of a teacher/author.”
The event, which will include a reading, a book signing, and a craft, takes place at 1:30 p.m. in the children's department at the library.
