Still telling tales

Seven years ago, longtime Baldwin resident Diane Baumann wrote an award-winning children’s song, “Show Dog,” to accompany a documentary (or “dog-umentary”) called “Caution, Show Dogs,” for which she also provided the narration.

Inspired, Baumann went on to write a children’s book based on the song, which she

self-published in 2007. The tale was illustrated by a former Baldwin resident, Jan Perlow, and further complemented with a music CD, a child-oriented sheet of guitar/piano music, a coloring book, a puzzle and a series of plush animals.

Baumann loved the concept she had created, and her enthusiasm led to a second book, in 2008, that dealt with the show dog’s feline counterpart, the show cat. Like its predecessor, “I Wanna Be Purr-fect (ShowCat)” provided an educational, in-depth look at the world of A-list animals and was also bundled with an attractive catalog of extras: sheet music, CD, companion coloring book and even a combination handbag/plush toy cat adorned by a blue pearl necklace and a rhinestone tiara charm.

Baumann had found her niche. She enjoyed the process of creating these books — although so far she had done so at her own expense — and felt that she was providing parents and other book buyers an outstanding value for their money. “People loved the books,” she told the Herald last week. “They were different. Unique. They were four pieces all in one. You got the book, a CD, a sheet of music and a coloring book. For the money, it was a wonderful gift, and the education factor made people feel like they weren’t spending their money on junk.”

The books’ author wasn’t the only one excited about her work. Interest in the projects was brisk among both individual consumers and buyers for retail chains, and sales projections looked healthy. Then, in a story all too familiar to people in the Baldwin area, the economy tanked. The year was 2008, Baumann was out of pocket for a small fortune, and suddenly the book buying public seemed to be shying away.