Winthrop educator, entrepreneur and ski coach Linda Kimbrell has collaborated with her sister Sue Perry to publish a new children’s book, “The Adventures of BB, the Wonder Pony” — a tale written from the perspective of a competitive Connemara pony named Bantry Bay’s Erin, or BB for short.
The book is published by Winthrop-based Methow Press.
“When Linda first proposed that I write a children’s book about my pony,” said Perry, “I told her that it was a crazy idea.” Perry’s veterinary career as a large animal X-ray technician and equine massage therapist led to an eventual gig as a columnist for The Horseman’s Yankee Pedlar — writing “Stable Solutions” monthly — but she never envisioned herself as a children’s book author, according to a press release.
But Kimbrell, who co-founded Winthrop Mountain Sports with husband, Tom in 1980, saw an opportunity in her sister’s passion.
“I’m not sure if this project really feels like one of my children,” she said in the release. “But this book was definitely a collaborative process. I don’t see how one person could ever do it on their own. Sue and our young illustrator, Thea Han, were the creativity and I was the logistics, along with Methow Press.”
Kimbrell said that author and poet Greg Wright of Methow Press was instrumental in guiding her and her sister through the publishing process.
“It was wonderful to hold the finished book in my hands for the first time,” Perry said. “I hope young horse lovers enjoy hearing about life from BB’s point of view.”
“The Adventures of BB, the Wonder Pony” is available for $7.99 at The Iron Horse in Winthrop, as well at Trail’s End Bookstore, and may be available soon at Methow Valley Goods on the TwispWorks campus.
