From the trenches, words for kids
Montreal Alouettes rookie defensive tackle Woody Baron co-authors children’s book
TORONTO — Woody Baron finds the spectre of tangling with a hulking offensive lineman much less daunting than sitting before young children.
The Montreal Alouettes rookie defensive lineman has co-authored a book titled #JustaGobbler with his uncle, James Baron, and Henry Taylor. The 38-page hardcover publication was released in August for third- and fourth-graders. Baron’s co-authors were also football players who were once teammates in the Arena Football League.
Baron did his first reading last week at an after-school program in a Montreal church and held his first in-school session Monday. The six-foot-one, 270-pound Baron feels more anxiety preparing to read to a young audience than engaging an ill-tempered 300-pound centre or guard.
“I get butterflies before I do any of that like any person does,” Baron said in Toronto last week before Montreal’s 26-22 road loss Saturday to the Argonauts. “But then I realize I know the subject matter and what I’m talking about and I’m not trying to do anything out of the ordinary and that kind of brings me back down to earth.”
Baron said his uncle approached him about the book in 2016 when Baron was still at Virginia Tech. Although the project took two years to complete, Baron couldn’t be happier with the finished product.
“My uncle went to Virginia Tech some 20 years before I did and the book being centred around that, it felt like a good fit, an easy transition and something to get into,” Baron said. “I love to write and so it felt like a perfect introductory project and it’s proved to be that and more.
“I just remember it being such an exciting idea and being able to see it now in person, it’s gone above and beyond anything I could’ve imagined. The illustrations are so unique, so vibrant, so attractive and the book’s message is so versatile. You can take it to anybody and they’ll be able to digest it.”
The book’s central figure is the Virginia Tech Hokie, the school’s turkey-like mascot who’s very excited about an upcoming talent show. But as he learns what his friends will be doing at the show, the mascot’s self-confidence diminishes because he’s focusing too much on others and not what he can offer.
“Slowly but surely his confidence kind of dwindles throughout the book until the end when he’s reminded of how much he has inside of himself,” Baron said. “He’s able to rebuild his confidence and be proud of what he can offer.
“It’s all about self-belief, selfconfidence, knowing who you are, being proud of it and always believing in yourself. I think the message is great for everyone.
“It’s a message that can reach everybody at different levels, myself included,” he said. “There are so many things going on outside of your own peripheral that it’s easy to get distracted.
“But then you have so much to offer in yourself.”
Baron said the project was a labour of love because he always enjoyed writing — be it fiction, non-fiction or even thesis papers — while growing up in Nashville.
“The majority of my writing nowadays is journalistically in a private format,” he said. “It’s something I like to do as a hobby.
“I’m kind of using this book as a litmus test to see how that goes professionally. Writing makes me happy.”
Baron would readily welcome other writing opportunities and is receptive to doing another children’s book.
“I’m so open to the different opportunities right now,” he said. “I think (another children’s book) is the plan down the road but for the time being we’re just getting started.
“We’ve just scraped the tip of the iceberg with the book we’ve started now.”