Christmas Tree Comes to Life in Ohio Author's Latest Book

Nov. 17, 2011 - PRLog -- “O Christmas Tree” is the story of the Marshalls, a family wrapped up in their holiday traditions and eager to celebrate the season by decorating their Christmas tree. But when their tree, Treena, thinks they have their priorities askew, she surprises them by coming to life to set the record straight and teach them what Christmas is really about.

Author Lindsay Bonilla was inspired to write O Christmas Tree three years ago during the holiday season when the lyrics to the traditional Christmas carol O Christmas Tree kept coming into her head. “I had never really paid attention to the words of the song before,” Bonilla says, “and when I did, I  found them rather amusing. I couldn't help but picture the tree as a character in the song, trying to figure out what to make of all the praises being sung to her branches.”

At the time, Bonilla, who is also a professional actress and storyteller, had been asked to write a dramatic sketch for an event at her church. She chose to write it about a tree whose initial enjoyment of the praise she receives from the family decorating her quickly turns to confusion and frustration. The humorous skit in which the tree confronts the family was well-received by the audience, and months later Bonilla set about turning it into a children's book. “Adapting the story from the stage to the page proved more difficult than I thought it would be,” she says. “I wrestled with quite a few things and had to put it down and come back to it on a number of occasions, but ultimately, it was a rewarding experience. And it was through this process that the character of Treena the Christmas Tree really came to life and took on more personality.”

Bonilla hopes that Treena's story will inspire families to think about and celebrate the true reason for the season. “I love all of the wonderful traditions of the Christmas season,” says Bonilla, “but I never want to allow these to overshadow the message of Christ's birth. There is nothing wrong with all of our fun holiday traditions, but ultimately, the greatest gift we give at Christmas will never be under the tree. The greatest gift we can give is to share the light of Christ with someone else.”

Bonilla is preparing an audience-participatory storytelling performance of the book in which she plays the role of Treena the Christmas Tree. This performance will be ready for audiences in December of this year and will have the audience singing along and acting out scenes from the story.

Lindsay Bonilla is an author, actress, world traveler, and storyteller. As the founder and director of World of Difference, Ltd., a touring theatrical storytelling company, she visits libraries, schools and other venues, sharing her interactive and educational performances of folktales with audiences of all ages while at the same time inspiring the imagination and instilling a love for learning and literacy. In addition to O Christmas Tree, she is the author of two other children's books, Lily and the City of Light and 'Twas the Year Christ Left Christmas. She is also the writer and co-producer of the film, Flight to India, which takes audiences on 'the adventure of imagination' and which is now available on DVD. She lives in North Canton, OH with her husband and biggest supporter, Estith, and their dog, Blitzen. Visit Lindsay on the web at: www.lindsaybonilla.com and www.worldofdiff.org


O Christmas Tree, by Lindsay Bonilla
Illustrated by Jack Foster
Publication Date:   October 11, 2011
ISBN-10:  1616331887
ISBN-13:  978-1-61633-188-7
$9.95 Illustrated
20 pages soft cover
Published by Guardian Angel Publishing

Available at all major online bookstores, at www.guardianangelpublishing.com, or by ordering at any bookstore through Ingrams. Also available as an e-book.

Contact:
Lindsay Bonilla  
330-858-0761  
lindsaybonilla@hotmail.com


Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc.
12430 Tesson Ferry Rd #186
Saint Louis, MO 63128 USA

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Lindsay Bonilla is an author, actress, world traveler, and storyteller. As the founder and director of World of Difference, Ltd., a touring theatrical storytelling company, she visits libraries, schools and other venues, sharing her interactive and educational performances of folktales with audiences of all ages while at the same time inspiring the imagination and instilling a love for learning and literacy. In addition to O Christmas Tree, she is the author of two other children's books, Lily and the City of Light and 'Twas the Year Christ Left Christmas. She is also the writer and co-producer of the film, Flight to India, which takes audiences on 'the adventure of imagination' and which is now available on DVD. She lives in North Canton, OH with her husband and biggest supporter, Estith, and their dog, Blitzen. Visit Lindsay on the web at: www.lindsaybonilla.com and www.worldofdiff.org