Sallie & Sheba
This simple story is set on a west coast beach and describes the seaside walk taken by Sallie and her dog Sheba. It is an alliterative poetic reflection on the routine joy of walking the seashore with one’s dog. It captures the typical sights, patterns of a dog’s seaside discoveries, and the banter that occurs between owners and their dogs.
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The front cover of Sallie and Sheba
Inspiration for the Story
Sallie and Sheba was inspired by a walk with my friend, Sallie, her dog, and my meditative ponderings on the tongue twister, Sallie Sells Seashells by the Seashore. Sallie and I both prioritize walking the beach at low tide. When we can we try to meet up for these relaxing saunters listening to the rolling waves, watching the dashing sandpipers while her present dog, Mo dashes from one beach finding to another. This day, while walking Muir Beach, I was watching Sallie direct Mo and thinking of the tongue twister. Sallie shared with me that they had another dog, Sheba, that passed away. This got me brainstorming over the hike of ideas for a children’s story using the classic tongue twister as inspiration. Days later the alliterative story was birthed. I wanted to capture the serene memories of that day, and as such, I was inspired to paint the illustrations. My goal was to make a book through Costco for Sallie. Since making the personal book, I’ve garnered the confidence to share the story through self-publishing. My hope is that it will serve as a souvenir for others, reminding them of their sacred beach walks.
Guide for Reading: PRC
Predictions, Reflections and Connections
Predictions
Predicting is an essential tool when developing as a strong reader. This story has been written to hook the young audience in engaging in predictable events.
Reflections
Reflecting throughout a book makes the story extra personal and come alive. It reflects a reader’s level of comprehension. A more thoughtful and complex reflection and connection reveal a higher understanding of the story. They also help reinforce one’s memory sequence which forms the basis of a retelling with more detail and reference to nuance. A simple and literal retelling reflects a more simplistic understanding.
Connections
Making connections facilitates a deeper understanding of a story through making inferences, noting details and relating them to prior information. It is seeing, linking, and articulating other topics and events to the story. The reader is applying this reading experience to other learned information. Often when making connections the reader will arrive at exciting new insights that extend beyond the literal story.
