Author Jef Benedetti To Hold Book Signing On January 16 At El Acapulco Restaurant In Gahanna Ohio

Jan. 5, 2010 - PRLog -- Jef Benedetti, Columbus Ohio area children’s author and creator of “Kidtext With a Message,” will sign copies of his latest children’s first-chapter book, The Cactus that Saved Ashleyville, on Saturday, January. 16, 2010 at El Acapulco Mexican Restaurant, 96 N. High St. at Town Street in Gahanna, Ohio from noon to 2 p.m.

The Cactus that Saved Ashleyville is Benedetti’s newest first-chapter book for early to middle-elementary readers. The first book in the “Rosemary and Friends” series, The Cactus that Saved Ashleyville addresses ethnic diversity, prejudice, discrimination and other multicultural issues. The Cactus that Saved  Ashleyville is the story of Eduardo “Lito” Sanchez, a first-generation American son of Mexico-born parents.

Lito seeks to solidify his identity as an American while acknowledging his Latin roots and using the Mexican culinary delicacy nopalitos (the pads of the prickly pear cactus) to help save his town, ravaged by unemployment.

The book signing will be held at El Acapulco Mexican Restaurant, 96 N. High St. at Town Street in Downtown Gahanna. No charge samples of the nopalitos cooked with the recipe in Benedetti’s book will be available at the signing. Lunch and beverages will be available for purchase at the signing.

El Acapulco Mexican Restaurant is owned and managed by Jose Banderas and Raquel Sanchez. “I wanted to hold the signing at El Acapulco because I work at Creekside in Downtown Gahanna, which is one block west of the restaurant,” Benedetti said. “Jose and Raquel have been very hospitable to me and I wanted to share this day with them. Also, Raquel’s last name is the same as the hero of my newest book, so what better place to hold a book signing?”

‘Kidtext With a Message,” continued Benedetti, “is a brand that is truly unique. In this style of multicultural literature, the heroes use foods from their native lands to assimilate into all of American culture – not just the pop culture aspect – regardless of the country the kids or their parents are from,” he said.

Copies of The Cactus that Saved Ashleyville  will be available at the restaurant on the day of the signing. The book is also available at www.jefbenedetti.com .

Jef Benedetti is available for interview and can be reached using the information below, or by email at jefbenedetti@hotmail.com.

The Cactus That Saved Ashleyville
Jef Benedetti
WordWork Publishing LLC.
ISBN:  978-0-9801372-1-7

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Author Jef Benedetti is founder and president of WordWork Publishing L.L.C. and creator of “Kidtext With a Message,” the logo phrase associated with Benedetti’s publishing company, WordWork Publishing L.L.C. Benedetti created the phrase to help identify the literature he writes for children.

In 2007, Benedetti published the illustrated children’s book Rosemary’s Taken Over My Potatoes, a charming tale of Rosemary Mead, who overuses her namesake herb while cooking her signature potato dish. With the help of her father, she crafts a recipe using the correct amount of the herb. Just as the nopalito recipe is contained on the final two pages of The Cactus that Saved Ashleyville, Rosemary’s fried potato recipe is on the final page of Rosemary’s Taken Over My Potatoes, which is available for $5, postage included, at www.jefbenedetti.com.

WordWork Publishing, L.L.C., established in 2009, publishes children’s books that feature “Kidtext With a Message.”