The good people of Podd are a strange lot. Everyone in the kingdom thinks himself or herself to be somehow odd or weird-and considers everyone else to be perfectly normal. Some worry they have funny hair; others don't like the shape of their noses; and still more think their eyes look strange.
When an enemy threatens to march his army into Podd, the king (who thinks he has very odd-looking feet) looks for a hero to defend the country. But everyone he asks refuses to lead Podd's army, arguing their problems make them too weird to save the kingdom. Will the citizens of Podd learn to accept themselves for who they are and find the courage to defend the realm, or are the land of Podd and its people doomed?
Written by Ed Newman and illustrated by Ian Welshons, A Remarkable Tale from the Land of Podd... uses wry Seussian humor, rhyme, and captivating illustrations to teach an important lesson about self-awareness and self-worth. No matter how we perceive ourselves, we can make the most of what we've got-and others probably won't even notice what we don't like about ourselves anyway.
About the Author: Ed Newman has worked in advertising for more than twenty-five years and has been a published writer and columnist since the early 1980s. In 1991, he won the Arrowhead Regional Arts Competition with his short story "The Breaking Point"; in 1993, he published his first book, Nightfall: A Time to Reflect at the End of the Day.
More recently, his story "Episode on South Street"was produced as a short film and won accolades at the Erie Film Festival. And, in 2011, Newman published his first young adult novel, The Red Scorpion, a haunted house suspense thriller, while also releasing three volumes of short stories.
Illustrator Ian Welshons graduated from the University of Minnesota, Duluth, with a fine arts degree. He currently resides in Stillwater, Minnesota.
