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Comox estuary featured in new book

Book launch May 30 at 1 p.m. at the Courtenay Library

Author Marlet Ashley and illustrator Kate Brown have published a sixth book for children set in the Comox estuary.

A Pirate’s Life for Gabby, fifth (and final) in their series Revelry on the Estuary and their sixth children’s book, is set in the Comox estuary at Comox Harbour and Goose Spit.

A Pirate’s Life for Gabby is the tale of how Gabby Gull, a seagull, and his group of friends become swashbuckling pirates in the Comox estuary. A new friend, Silky Seal joins the crew and together they set out to rule the waves. As with all of the Revelry on the Estuary tales, a subtle message is delivered to readers that we all must do our part to preserve our beautiful waterway.

Also by Ashley and Brown are The Interlopers (2012), Trumpeters’ Tribulations (2012), Must be Christmas (2012), Penelope Piper’s Great Adventure (2013), and Henri Sings the Blues (2014).

Books are available in Courtenay at Laughing Oyster Books and the Information Centre; in Comox at Blue Heron Books, the Comox Valley Airport giftshop, and the Comox Museum and www.ashleybrownbooks.com  All books are available on Amazon.

Kate Brown, the illustrator, lives in studied art and design in London, England, and developed a career as an interior designer, product designer, and clothing designer. Brown has been involved in designing museums in which exhibited artefacts are brought to life and tell stories to enthral and capture the interest of visitors.  Kate is president and founding member of the Comox Valley Art Group, an organization that encourages both artists and the support of local charities through art. Kate lives in Courtenay, BC on the Comox estuary.

Marlet Ashley, the author, is a long-time educator with a master of arts in English literature and creative writing.  She taught creative writing at the University of Windsor and was an instructor of literature and composition at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Her publications include a number of short stories and poetry in a variety of literary publications, and she has authored the Canadian edition of the textbook Literature and the Writing Process published by Pearson Prentice Hall, Toronto.  Marlet Ashley was one of three finalists for the 2012 John Kenneth Galbraith Literary Award. Marlet is an executive member of the Comox Valley Writers’ Society, and she lives in Comox, BC.

The book launch for A Pirate’s Life for Gabby is on May 30 at 1 p.m. at the Courtenay Library.