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Lily A. Goldman Author of Mrs.Nosy-A Composting Story Interviewed By Andrea Coventry Of Bookpleasures.com
http://www.bookpleasures.com/websitepublisher/articles/1674/1/Lily-A-Goldman-Author-of-MrsNosy-A-Composting-Story-Interviewed-By-Andrea-Coventry-Of-Bookpleasurescom/Page1.html
Andrea Coventry

Reviewer Andrea Coventry: Andrea is a Montessori child - turned educator.  An avid reader and writer, she is published on several websites. Click Here to find a listing of Andrea's sites where you can find many of her writing contributions.



 
By Andrea Coventry
Published on December 9, 2009
 



Lily A. Goldman, Author of Mrs.Nosy-A Composting Story Interviewed By Andrea Coventry Of Bookpleasures.com

 

Click Here To Purchase Mrs. Nosy-A Composting Story and/or Find Out More About The Book


Today, Andrea Coventry one of Bookpleasures’ reviewers is excited to have as one of our guests, Lily A.Goldman, author and illustrator of Mrs. Nosy-A Composting Story.

Andrea:

Good day Lily and thanks for participating in our interview.

Lily:

Thank you Andrea for having me.

Andrea:

What is your background?

Lily:

I was born in Egypt, where I was immersed in many languages. I attended the Lycée Franco-Egyptien and learned French, English and Egyptian Arabic. On my own, I also learned Italian and Spanish. I had a wonderful art teacher called Monsieur Gazalet and I also took private lessons with Signor Minotti, who imbued me with the love of art, the smell of turpentine and inflamed my imagination with weekly assignments.

In the early part of the 1960s, my family and many others were “persona non-grata,” in Egypt and we were “encouraged” to leave the country, and thus we moved to Paris. Even as I was working to help out my parents, I managed to attend various public art courses. Of course, we visited the Louvre and other museums in Paris. I went to secretarial school and secured a good job in Paris, first at the Ministry of Agriculture and then at a subsidiary of the United Nations, The International Union Against Tuberculosis.

After a stay of three years in Paris, we found our way to Montreal, Canada where I met my husband Norm, had three kids and where I still reside.  I worked a Medical Secretary at the Montreal Chest Hospital and I took evening classes in art and art history and finally graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (applied and art history) from Concordia University.

Initially, I loved oil painting but I had to have a room with a lot of ventilation because of the fumes. However, this was something I couldn’t afford. Consequently, I switched to watercolor and participated in workshops with various well-known Montreal artists. Today, I still use watercolor, however, I do a great deal of mixed media with watercolor, collage and pastel. From time to time, I use acrylics but they do not have the range of oil colors or watercolors.

I have conducted private watercolor workshops and I also taught in various Quebec schools throughout the Province under the banner of the Ministry of Culture in Quebec.

Andrea:

What kinds of awards have you won?

Lily

Over the years, I have won several awards, which always surprised me. I won many honorable mentions and some first prizes both in Montreal and in Treasure Island, Florida for flowers, portraits and landscapes.

Andrea:

How did you get involved in writing children’s books?

Lily:

Summers are usually very quiet in Montreal, and thus to keep occupied, I wrote poems and children’s stories both for my children and grandchildren. When the stories were written and edited properly, I would divide up the text and create illustrations for each page.

Andrea:

What was the inspiration behind Mrs. Nosy?

Lily:

Before I wrote Mrs. Nosy, I wrote a story about Farmer Norm who in fact was my husband. Under the direction of our son Dan, the ecologist in the family, we bought a compost box and placed it in out garden. We began filling it up with all kinds of food scraps, but they attracted all kinds of animals, especially a ground hog, that could dig through the thickest protection and make a mess of our garden!

Mrs. Nosy came after Farmer Norm. I was then taking a writing class at our local library and I wrote Mrs. Nosy as an assignment. My instructor loved it and the rest is history!

Andrea:

What makes this book unique?

Lily:

This book is unique because it appeals to both grown-ups and children. Especially the reluctant grown-ups.

Andrea:

Why is it so important today?

Lily:

Mrs. Nosy encourages people to save the earth a little at a time. To keep it green and diminish the harmful greenhouse gases emissions. Greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by about one ton whenever a ton of organic waste is composted instead of being sent to a landfill site.

Andrea:

Different methods of composting exist. Which is your preferred method?

Lily:

I like to gather up my kitchen scraps in a zip-lock bag (which can be washed several times) in a pail under the kitchen sink, then I throw them in the big compost bin in the backyard in the summer and in the winter, in a small compost bin provided by my Municipality, the City of Cote St. Luc, which they collect once a week. If it starts to smell, I throw on the heap of compost some baking soda.

Andrea:

How long have you been composting at home?

Lily:

About five years.

Andrea:

What is the message that you are trying to share?

Lily:

If everyone does his share of composting, we can save the earth a little at a time.

Andrea:

How would you like your book to be used?

Lily:

First of all, I would love children to read it and make their caregivers aware of the benefits of composting.  I then would love to have it used in the industry of composting, as a promotion tool or as a teaching and outreach tool.

Andrea:

What is the best way for schools or families to start a composting program?

Lily:

Cooking scraps and leftovers can be gathered in a small pail in the kitchen and then thrown in a bin in the garden. When these scraps decompose, they make the best mulch or fertilizer for planting.

For schools, all the leftovers the kids do not want to eat, as well as falling leaves and garden twigs, can be gathered and thrown in a compost bin. The kids could then use the mulch to cultivate a garden. They can then donate the vegetables to poor people, or have a chef come and cook with them. They would love this!

Andrea:

What are some other ways for them to “go green?”

Lily:

Wrap your lunch in recyclable paper. Throw away your food scraps in a compost bin.  Walk or bike whenever possible, using less gas that pollute our air. Use recyclable bags when you go shopping. Encourage the growth of trees.

Andrea:

What are some of your other books?

Lily:

I have written Farmer Norm about composting and a little fight between Norm and a groundhog.

I have also written and illustrated Kaliki and Jojo about a greyhound dog and a latchkey little girl, which was published in 1996.

I illustrated a book for a friend, K. Frey, The Potters and the Painted Lad,  which was published in 1997.

I also wrote two stories about the discovery of the hieroglyphics, Nofret’s Magic Hair and The Lucky Scarab.

Andrea:

Do you have any upcoming projects?

Lily:

I am preparing an art show for the month of June at the Eleanor London Library in Cote Saint-Luc, Quebec, Canada

Andrea:

How did your family help with your project?

Lily:

My family was a tremendous help with my Mrs. Nosy project. First, my older son Ron took all the pictures of my illustrations. Dan was my best critique and Joanna helped me with uploading the story and the pictures to the computer. Norm, my husband, of course helped me a lot with the publicity of Mrs.Nosy on the Internet. And my grandchildren, Stephie and Alex helped me read my story “with expression!”

Andrea:

What kind of media did you use for your illustrations? Is this your preferred media?

Lily:

I used collage paper from glossy magazines and watercolor, which is my preferred media.

Andrea:

What kind of advice do you have for young, aspiring authors and illustrators?

Lily

Perfect your skills and be very, very perseverant. Don’t give up!

Andrea:

Where can we find out more about Mrs.Nosy, as well as your art work?

Lily:

You can find out about Mrs.Nosy by following this LINK
Some of my artwork can be found HERE
You can contact me at lilygoldman@gmail.com

Andrea

Thank you so much for your time!

Lily

You are most welcome.

Read Me!

 Click Here To Read Andrea's Review of Mrs.Nosy-A Composting Story

Click Here To Purchase Mrs. Nosy-A Composting Story and/or Find Out More About The Book