Reginald and sundry stuff

It all started with a support group discussion among foster parents here in France, and the problems encountered with kids who wouldn't eat vegetables that came from 'dirty earth' or eggs that came from 'chickens' bottoms'. Put that together with the fact that for years I have read stories to my foster children at night with the option 'French or English?' which they thoroughly enjoy, and voilà - out came the idea of Reginald! This first story introduces our naive little vegetarian vampire, and shows how he benefits from his 'veggies' and convinces other vampires to eat 5 fruits or vegetables per day. In future stories Reginald will have to come to terms with basic gardening practises, earthworms, wiggly insects, greenhouses and much, much more. The idea is to marry humour with instruction and in some way compensate for those wonderful grandfathers who knew all about these things and shared them with our lucky post-war generation.When I was finally lucky enough to own my own little plot of paradise here in France, I often heard echoes of my grandpa "Planting a bush?  Puddle it in well..." and I'm hoping that Reginald might leave a few similar memories embedded in small heads - whilst they laugh at his antics with wiggly things and poo, etc.  Whatever else they're great fun to write, and Eric is a brilliant illustrator, while Denhel picks over my woeful written French and turns it into a thing of beauty :-)  Luckily I have a resident panel of judges who subject me to unpitying criticism, so I know what kids expect to happen next, even if it wasn't quite what I had in mind!