Mouse Droppings in the Cupboard; Remembering Bygone Days

This whimsical pioneer story about a Mennonite family in the Kitchener area takes place about 100 years ago. It is written from the viewpoint of Elmer the Mouse, who lives in the woodpile in the Hallman kitchen and scurries around, following the activities of the family's four children. His favourite is little Laura Hallman, who likes to play with her dolls in the smoke house and drops little thimble cookies to him as a treat.

I "ghost-wrote" and "co-illustrated" this true, historical, full-colour picture book, which also has plenty of photographs. It was self-published by Ann Psutka, the daughter of Laura Hallman, as a tribute to her parents and to her family's Pennsylvania Dutch history. The Hallman family is connected to the famous Schneider Haus in Kitchener.