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DEDHAM —
Children sat on the floor, listening closely as author Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustrator Peter H. Reynolds alternated reading from their new book “Plant a Kiss,” at the Blue Bunny bookstore.
After the reading, 5-year-old Aleena Zaferazopoulos said her favorite part of the story was “Giving love to the kids.”
As Rosenthal and Reynolds sat down to sign books at the “Plant a Kiss” release party on Saturday, Feb. 4, Rosenthal asked the children for a favor.
It was her mother’s birthday and she wanted everyone to sing “Happy Birthday” to her over the phone. Rosenthal dialed, the kids sang and her mom was tickled.
“This is kind of like planting a kiss,” Rosenthal said at the Dedham bookstore on High Street.
The book was recently featured on “Martha Stewart Show” as a top Valentine’s Day pick and will be read nationwide at Barnes and Noble stores on Saturday, Feb. 11, in celebration of the holiday.
“The book is doing really, really well right now,” Reynolds said. “It’s racing up the charts and we’re encouraging people to go to their local independent bookstores to buy the book.”
Rosenthal, a New York Times bestseller and award-winning author, paired with Reynolds, who has published 30 books in 25 languages and won a Nautilus Book Award, to create “Plant a Kiss.”
“Peter pretty much illustrated the book in one fell swoop perfectly,” Rosenthal said.
Both artists had admired one another’s work for years and were amped up for the opportunity to work together.
“I knew this was going to be a magical combination,” Reynolds said.
From the cover of the book to the very last page, the illustrations ooze with glitter. Rosenthal had included glitter in the stick-figure drawings of her original story, which was sent to Reynolds as inspiration.
“I used glitter to illustrate the magic of what would happen if you planted a kiss,” Rosenthal said. “There was nothing else I could think of that would be more appropriate than the essence and feel of glitter.”
The idea of “Plant a Kiss,” stemmed from Rosenthal’s love for wordplay and a fond memory of her son. As a young boy, her son hoped for a meatball tree, Rosenthal said. So they took a meatball, gathered in the backyard, and planted it, she said. Similar to what happens in the book.
Along with signing books, the pair invited everyone to come to the kissing booth where they had Hershey’s Kisses and kiss stamps and stickers. No real kisses though, just like in the book.
Children sat on the floor, listening closely as author Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustrator Peter H. Reynolds alternated reading from their new book “Plant a Kiss,” at the Blue Bunny bookstore.
After the reading, 5-year-old Aleena Zaferazopoulos said her favorite part of the story was “Giving love to the kids.”
As Rosenthal and Reynolds sat down to sign books at the “Plant a Kiss” release party on Saturday, Feb. 4, Rosenthal asked the children for a favor.
It was her mother’s birthday and she wanted everyone to sing “Happy Birthday” to her over the phone. Rosenthal dialed, the kids sang and her mom was tickled.
“This is kind of like planting a kiss,” Rosenthal said at the Dedham bookstore on High Street.
The book was recently featured on “Martha Stewart Show” as a top Valentine’s Day pick and will be read nationwide at Barnes and Noble stores on Saturday, Feb. 11, in celebration of the holiday.
“The book is doing really, really well right now,” Reynolds said. “It’s racing up the charts and we’re encouraging people to go to their local independent bookstores to buy the book.”
Rosenthal, a New York Times bestseller and award-winning author, paired with Reynolds, who has published 30 books in 25 languages and won a Nautilus Book Award, to create “Plant a Kiss.”
“Peter pretty much illustrated the book in one fell swoop perfectly,” Rosenthal said.
Both artists had admired one another’s work for years and were amped up for the opportunity to work together.
“I knew this was going to be a magical combination,” Reynolds said.
From the cover of the book to the very last page, the illustrations ooze with glitter. Rosenthal had included glitter in the stick-figure drawings of her original story, which was sent to Reynolds as inspiration.
“I used glitter to illustrate the magic of what would happen if you planted a kiss,” Rosenthal said. “There was nothing else I could think of that would be more appropriate than the essence and feel of glitter.”
The idea of “Plant a Kiss,” stemmed from Rosenthal’s love for wordplay and a fond memory of her son. As a young boy, her son hoped for a meatball tree, Rosenthal said. So they took a meatball, gathered in the backyard, and planted it, she said. Similar to what happens in the book.
Along with signing books, the pair invited everyone to come to the kissing booth where they had Hershey’s Kisses and kiss stamps and stickers. No real kisses though, just like in the book.
“What I like about the book is if you read the book you realize that except for her first kiss, there are no kisses in the book,” Reynolds explained. “So what she is really sharing is love and kindness, which is something the world needs more of.”
Rosenthal said the idea of sharing unconditionally without expecting anything in return is a big part of the theme they hoped to convey to readers.
“While it is a perfect book for Valentine’s Day,” Reynolds said, “it really is a book for all year round.”
Kristina Finn is an intern with the Dedham Transcript. She can be reached by email at dedham@wickedlocal.com. Like The Dedham Transcript on Facebook at and follow us on Twitter at @DedhamTranscrip.
