- A children's book made in the Lehigh Valley has won a National Parenting Products Award
- The book called The Legend of Burbbles is about fictional characters who help protect children from monsters
- Themes in the book include friendship, protection, and loyalty
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — An audiobook made in the Lehigh Valley called "The Legend of Burbbles" has won a National Parenting Product Award.
The book was written by Theresa Radtke, an Emmy-nominated television writer who works for Lehigh Valley Public Media, and co-produced by Gloria Domina, a Grammy-winning producer who has worked on previous children's books.
As of now, the book exists only in audio form, but plans are in place for a hard-copy, illustrated book within the next year, as well as the option for a stage musical production in the later future.
The book is about mythical creatures called Burbbles who play a heroic role, helping to guard children and other protagonists against evildoers, such as monsters.
Burbbles
When asked what a Burbble is, both Radtke and Domina were so invested in the lore of the mythical creatures, they barely mentioned the fact that they are fictional.
Radtke repeated her line from the book off of memory:
"It's a very tiny creature," Radtke said. "And, to quote the book: 'They are only inches tall, and by the measure of some are less than a foot.
"Their heads are shaped like an egg on its end, their bodies are the color of pearly white soap, they wear colorful robes and brandish magic wands.'"
Although the Burbble characters in the book are fictional, the themes they represent are not.
"I just think that children — you're alone in the dark at night, your parents kiss you goodnight, they close the door, you go to sleep, you're in the room by yourself and sometimes that's when fears creep in," Radtke said.
According to the lore of the book, that's when the Burbbles step in to help.
"And me being a child, I wish I had a Burbble, you know, I had fears of the dark, and fears of opening the closet door, and fears of getting out of bed because I didn't know what was underneath the bed, and maybe if I heard this story, or if there was a Burbble sitting on my dresser, I would have felt better."Gloria Domina, co-producer of "The Legend of Burbbles"
"I think they need to believe in that if they believe in monsters in the closet," Radtke said.
Both Radtke and Domina hesitated to force the point of explaining the meaning and metaphors of the book, preferring to leave it open to interpretation.
"This is a children's book that's family-oriented," Domina said. "And it also has a lot of different meanings for a lot of people."
Domina said that only after the book was published (and circulated in several different countries, as far away as Australia) did they start to hear all the different meanings it took on for different people.
"After all that was brought to our attention, we were like, 'Yeah, it does,'" Domina said. "And me being a child, I wish I had a Burbble.
"You know, I had fears of the dark, and fears of opening the closet door, and fears of getting out of bed because I didn't know what was underneath the bed.
"And maybe if I heard this story, or if there was a Burbble sitting on my dresser, I would have felt better."
Local talent
Radtke has resided in the Lehigh Valley for more than 20 years, and Domina lives primarily in the Valley — sometimes nearby in Delaware.
The audiobook version was recorded at Spectra Sound in Quakertown by Jim Mcgee, and narrated by local radio host Rick Michaels— who apparently was chosen because he sounds like "a grandpa reading to his grandchild."
The music is by Lehigh Valley-based musician Craig Kastelnik.
Kastelnik was a perfect match for the project, Domina said.
"He knew exactly what we were saying and what we wanted, and the original music is really fantastic. When I go in the studio, I don't like canned music, I like live music. So that was one of the things that we were looking for. And it worked out perfectly."Gloria Domina, speaking about musician Craig Kastelnik
"He knew exactly what we were saying and what we wanted, and the original music is really fantastic," she said.
"When I go in the studio, I don't like canned music, I like live music. So that was one of the things that we were looking for. And it worked out perfectly."
The book, at $4.99 or $5.99, is available on Spotify, iTunes, Google Play, Barnes & Noble Audio, and essentially any other place where audiobooks are sold.
The print version is expected for 2024, with no date set yet for the stage musical.
