Retired Shoreline Schools teacher / coach publishes third children's picture book

Nana Posy and the Christmas concert speaks
to the emotional toll of the pandemic

Retired Shoreline School District teacher and coach Linda Rittenhouse recently published the third children's picture book in her Nana Posy series about a vivacious grandmother's interactions with the wildlife in her back yard. 

The first two books in the series, "Nana Posy's Project" and "Nana Posy and Quail Pie" were published earlier this year.

In "Nana Posy and the Christmas Concert," Nana Posy has a bad case of the holiday blues. 

Even though she has decorated, baked, and sung holiday songs in her terrible scratchy voice, she is having a hard time getting into a festive mood. 

Isolation due to the pandemic and thinking about how people will be missing their loved ones during the holiday season have taken their toll. 

Not to be a spoiler, but something might just happen to lift her spirits...this is a children's book, after all!

"Nana Posy and the Christmas Concert" deals honestly, but gently with the challenges faced by everyone around the world because of the pandemic. 

Nana Posy's style of talking to children ("I'm sorry to tell you something sad, but I always want to be honest with you.") will help kids navigate this time and show them that life can work in magical ways to bring joy even during the most difficult times.

Rittenhouse' young adult novel was inspired
by her coaching experiences

Since retiring from teaching French and Spanish and coaching softball, basketball, and track for eighteen years at Einstein Middle School, Linda has also published a young adult novel, "Fearless!" 

Set in classrooms, halls, track, and locker room, "Fearless!" is the story of 13-year-old Noah Martin's search for a place to excel among classmates who he believes have "perfect lives," his attempts to navigate the challenges of middle school, and the unlikely heroes he meets along the way.

"It was wonderful to take some of the unforgettable memories I have from teaching and coaching and turn them into a novel," says Rittenhouse. 

The dedication of "Fearless!" reads, "to the hundreds of student athletes I coached. Thank you for always being willing to try the crazy things I asked of you and for having the good sense to laugh every step of the way. I am grateful for the ways each of you enriched my life. You all have a piece of my heart forever. You know who you are."

"Fearless!" is available to borrow from the Einstein Middle School library. 

Linda's books are also available to purchase on Amazon, and she hopes they will soon be available in King County libraries. A founding member and former president of the Woodinville Friends of the Library, Linda has submitted her books for KCLS consideration.

Linda has a website for children, NanaPosy.com to give kids an opportunity to read, write, and learn about poetry. Her poetry has been published in The Lyric Magazine and in Sandcutters. Her creative non-fiction piece "Caught," inspired by trout fishing escapades of her father and his buddies during her childhood, was published in the Fall 2021 issue of Sky Island Journal, a free online literary magazine.