"Ben and the Dragon" reading & painting

Local couple entertains children

October 19, 2013

By MOLLIE WARNER - Staff Writer , Times Leader

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ST. CLAIRSVILLE- Andrée and David Weimer treated second, third, and fourth grade students at St. Mary's school to an auditory and visual experience this past Friday. The couple collaborated on a book, with David doing the writing and Andrée providing illustrations. The book is called "Ben and the Dragon", based partially on their son. David says "the only imaginary thing is the dragon world, which is strongly influenced by my notions of my French wife's heritage. I wanted to write a story for my boy where something extraordinary happens to him." While David read two chapters aloud to students, Andrée painted a scene from the book. The painting was donated to be put in St. Mary's library.

David has published two other books, and Andrée is a professional artist who runs a painting class at Fala Carte Art Studio at 165 East Main St. in St. Clairsville. David and Andrée live in Flushing, and their two sons attend St. Mary's school. Monday Oct. 21 and Wednesday Oct. 23, they will be repeating their reading/painting performance at St. Clairsville Elementary School's "Literacy Night: Reading is Spooktacular" event. They will do two readings each night, one at 5:30 p.m. and one at 6 p.m., with a question and answer session after each reading. For each painting that Andrée does, a prize drawing will be held. "Ben and the Dragon" can be purchased on amazon.com.

Warner can be reached at mwarner@timesleaderonline.com.

Article Photos

T-L Photo/MOLLIE?WARNER
Andr­­­ée Weimer paints a scene from ‘Ben and the Dragon'"

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"Situations of I": upcoming book excerpt

All of the short stories, essays and prose poems in my upcoming collection are centered on an individual, an "I."  This piece is penned by a decidedly near-sighted, yet honest and well-intended, singular voice....

Does My Dog Have a Favorite Song? 

I say music is reality; it contains a reality just as real as my tabletop.  It is real.  It transmits reality directly.  Okay, stinging hand.  Feeling the burn, I hear a song and hit the table once again.  Real.

Songs are complete eternal mini universes.  I get lost in them each time.  Why not? 

A performer gets older—or dies—and I still have his song, perfectly preserved, just like he and I used to be.  I listen and my feelings are carried higher, soaring over long-ago days reawakened.  Oh, I remember.  Each time.  I remember. 

Again. 

And again. 

Always the same.

Only more.

I always feel what I remember when my song plays.  Even more so, every time.  Each time I remember and I remember more every time. 

If I had silence I’d have none of this.  What would a world of silence be?  Could it be real?  Would it have words or sounds… or nostalgia?  Could it grow into the empty spaces in me?  I don’t know.

No thing. 

Silence.

Nothing.

Silence. 

With only silence, I’d hear only my silence looping over and over, right?

I could have it all.  Everything.  Silence would be me and I would be everything.  Right. 

From songs to me.  From too quiet, to too loud to stand.  Why can’t I keep my songs?  Is there a me?  Maybe there’s a music made of me.  Can I be silence?  I should be.

Even better—push ‘play’ on that cassette player over there, that CD player and iPhone.  Keep them playing.  Thank God.  Keep them all playing. 

Does my dog like music?  I should ask him.  He sure likes to eat.  

Press Release

David Weimer, 368 High Street, Flushing, OH  43977

October 16, 2013

Attn: Local News Media

RE:  Ben and the Dragon: a new children’s book reading & painting by the local author & illustrator at St. Mary’s Central Elementary in St. Clairsville, 2:15 p.m., Friday, Oct. 18.

Hello,

My wife and I are transplants to the Ohio Valley.  I grew up in Michigan and my wife, Andrée, is from Brittany, France.  We were longtime pen-pals.

We live in Flushing, Ohio and our two boys, 9 and 13, attend St. Mary’s Central Catholic School in St. Clairsville.  Last Christmas, I wrote Ben and the Dragon for my then-eight-year-old son.

I am a writer and Andrée is a professional artist who runs the Fala Carte Art Studio painting class studio at 165 E. Main Street in St. Clairsville at the corner of Sugar and Main.

On Friday, Oct. 18^th, at 2:15 p.m., I will read the first two chapters of Ben and the Dragon while my wife paints a scene from the book.  All the 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders at St. Mary’s will attend this visual and auditory experience.  After the 15-minute reading and a brief Q&A, we will sign copies of Ben and the Dragon and donate Andrée’s painting to the school library.

Each detail in Ben and the Dragon is taken from Ben’s life; the only imaginary thing is the dragon world, which is influenced by my notions of my French wife’s heritage.  I wanted to write a story for my eight-year-old where he was the main character and something extraordinary happens.  This story begins at a pond in our village park and involves a dragon from another world visiting the Ohio Valley.

A boy and a dragon meet at a pond.  Christmas vacation is almost here.  The two—an eight-year-old boy and a hundred-year-old dragon—embark on an adventure that will change them forever.

Note: Next Monday and Wednesday, Oct. 21 & 23, we will be doing our reading/painting event at St. Clairsville Elementary School for their program, “Literacy Night: Reading is Spooktacular.”  We will do two reading/paintings each day, at 5:30 and 6 p.m.  A drawing will be held for the paintings Andrée creates.

If this program interests you, please contact us or the schools!  You can visit Ben and the Dragon’s Amazon listing and click on the “Look Inside” feature to read its first chapter.

I hope to see you soon!

Sincerely,

David Weimer

PS-   Ben and the Dragon is my third published work.

Here is one of my writing blogs.  I am working on a collection of short stories for publication next spring, centered on Flushing, Ohio.

I have run a weekly philosophy meeting, M&M Philosophy, at the Ohio County Public Library in Wheeling for the past eight years.