Yuma mother and daughter publish children’s book
‘The Little Blue Bear’ was written by Maria Doten and illustrated by Chloe Doten
A Yuma mother and daughter have teamed up to write a children’s book. Maria Doten and then 11-year-old Chloe, a sixth grader at St. Francis Assisi Catholic School, recently published “The Little Blue Bear,” a 16-page book available in digital and paperback format.
Doten wrote the short story, written all in rhyme, and Chloe illustrated it. It’s about a lonely bear that’s feeling blue until he meets a little black bug and the two become friends. At first, the bear thinks the bug is annoying, but then as they hang out and get to know each other, they realize they have a lot in common and they end up good friends.
“It’s a little about loneliness and two unlikely friends,” Doten said.
Doten believes now is the perfect time to launch the book because a lot of people might be feeling lonely because they can’t be with their friends due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It gives kids a chance to see that someone might not look like you, but it’s OK to be their friends, give them a chance. It also teaches children that we all feel a little lonely sometimes, and it’s OK, and we need to be open to new friends,” Doten explained.
The story grew out of a poem that Doten wrote as a young girl. “As a child, a lot of times I felt lonely. I felt unaccepted, like I didn’t fit in, that I was different,” she said.
She also had a toy bear that was very special. “I didn’t have a lot of toys. We were very poor.”
Feelings of loneliness and wanting to be accepted are universal themes, and something that Chloe has also struggled with. “She feels different and doesn’t have many friends. Part of the reason I wanted to write this book and publish it was to show her how special she is, to showcase her special gift,” Doten said.
“Chloe has the gift that I was never given. She’s an amazing artist. She has the passion and such a unique flair for facial expressions. She expresses her emotions through her drawings. She’s been drawing since she was a year old. She would draw on anything and everything. It gets her in trouble at school.”
Although Doten can’t draw, she’s always wanted to do a children’s book. “Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to write a children’s book, and I noticed it was always part of a list of resolutions every year, but I never really did it,” she recalled.
She could write and rhyme but she couldn’t draw. “I love rhyming. I think it’s fun. I’m very creative, but drawing is not one of my specialties.”
Then in March, around the time of Read Across America, which celebrates Dr. Seuss, she suggested to Chloe that she could write the book, Chloe could illustrate it, and they could read it to her class.
“To my surprise, she said yes,” Doten noted. “She did all the illustrations by herself. She took my words and illustrated them.”
The first version was “cute but not her style,” so Doten asked Chloe to do the illustrations in her “unique style.” The second time, Chloe nailed it. “That was it! That’s Little Blue Bear! The expression in his eyes, they expressed the sadness he had,” Doten recalled thinking.
When they were done, they printed out the story and read it to Chloe’s classmates. The story had “such a wonderful response” and the kids asked where they could get it, so they decided to publish it.
“This pandemic gave us time to fine tune it,” Doten said.
It became a family project, with Maria’s husband, Gene, taking care of the “technical things, like formatting it.”
The book became available on Amazon on Chloe’s birthday, April 27, when she turned 12.
The mother-daughter duo and their book are getting national and statewide publicity with social media spotlights by the Girl Scouts. Chloe is a member of Troop 6135.
“I’m happy,” Chloe said in reaction.
Now they’re both thinking about their next projects, together and individually. Chloe wants to write a chapter book for young readers and is especially interested in Japanese animation and manga. She’s already done a comic book, which is now being transferred into digital format.
Chloe is mostly selftaught. She first remembers becoming interested in art around the age of 8 when she got a drawing app. She loves digital art but also uses pen, ink and markers. Her dream is to go to VidCom, an annual celebration of digital video and online video creators.
Her mom points out that Chloe is good at drawing characters and people, costumes, faces, eyes and animals. “She loves animals. I’m always impressed by the animals,” Doten said.
As for their next collaborative project, Doten is mulling the idea of doing “The Little Blue Bear’s Recipes to Happiness,” a book of “yummy treat” recipes.
“I love to bake, and Chloe loves sweets,” Doten noted.
The book might feature Babette, a little white kitten and the newest member of the family. Inspired by the book “Babette’s Feast,” the story would feature Babette and her real-life cat siblings, Kit Kat and Mr. Whiskers, as they help feral cats and prepare a feast for their furry friends to celebrate once the pandemic is over.
“We hope to do many, many more books,” Doten said. “I’m super excited about this one, and I hope Chloe goes along for the fun ride with me.”
“The Little Blue Bear” has brought Doten and Chloe closer together, and they hope to inspire others as well. “We hope to inspire other young girls and moms and dads and whoever to follow their dreams, create their books and do whatever they desire. Anyone can do it if only they put their hearts into,” Doten said.
Find “The Little Blue Bear” on Amazon at https://tinyurl.com/y8vxgd9j. The paperback is $12, and the ebook is $7.99.