Arts & Entertainment

Basking Ridge Mom Spreads Love In New Children's Book Inspired By Family, Son

While on maternity leave Amy Kerns was inspired to write a children's book after seeing her dog's reaction to the arrival of her son.

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — A passionate writer and Basking Ridge mom, Amy Kerns, is spreading the love in her first children's book "Harlow Learns He's Loved."

"I've always wanted to write a book," Kerns told Patch. "I loved writing in general but this story was spurred on by my son."

Kerns works in corporate America where she does a lot of writing through that but nothing creatively. To explore her passion further, she took a children's writing class online.

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The story of family love came to light during Kern's maternity leave. After bringing her son Crawford home in July 2020, her 7-year-old family dog Jackson became confused.

"'What is this new little critter in my house?! He was acting confused. He was wondering why we were now giving all of our kisses to the baby," said Kerns.

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This is the same storyline for the book where Jackson is portrayed by Harlow, a beloved hedgehog, who is confused why he isn’t getting as much affection from his mommy and daddy fox.

"The beauty of this story is that it is about blended families in general. Traditional, adopted - it really shows the love and support your parents have for you no matter who you are," said Kerns.

Written by Kerns and illustrated by Kim Hanzo, this book is the first in a series that follows Harlow.

Pregnant with her second child, Kerns intends to incorporate her personal experiences into the next storyline as well.

"There is much more adventure to come," said Kerns.

For more information on the book or to purchase it visit foxpointepublishing.com or Amazon.

See below for a digital trailer of the book:


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