INDIANAPOLIS — Marty Brown’s fascination with children’s books began at an early age.
“My parents always read to me and I've always appreciated that craft,” Brown said.
So when the father of two took inventory of his daughter’s books, he noticed something.
“I saw lots of books about Indiana and Indianapolis, but none of them really got off the beaten path into quirky places all around the city,” Brown said. “They focused more on touristy areas.”
Brown also wanted to help children learn numbers and letters.
“We went with something like ABCs, and 1-2-3s, which is very familiar to a lot of readers,” Brown said. “This is targeted at children ages two to six.”
Another familiar aspect of most children’s books is colorful illustrations and both of Brown’s books deliver with the help of Indianapolis-based artist Jingo M. de la Rosa.
“When Marty first hit me up about this book, it was almost a no brainer,” de la Rosa said. “I knew that was going to be a fun project.”
That fun also required de la Rosa to do some tasty research.
“I went to Long's donuts, I had to get those donuts to get into the spirit of things,” de la Rosa said. “There's something about going there and experiencing it once again, for the sake of creating something for these books.”
And while de la Rosa has called Indianapolis home for two decades, he says he saw his city differently thanks to this project.
“It goes back to me seeing it with a brand new set of eyes, really seeing the beauty of this city through its people,” de la Rosa said. “You go to these places and you meet world-class people, which makes this city world-class.”
You can find the "ABCs in Indianapolis" and "123s in Indianapolis" at several local retailers or you can purchase them online.
