Bonnie the Friendship Sloop

About the Book

This little paperback has a big message.

Cole and Clare love to play with Bonnie, their little toy Friendship sloop, in Moosehead Lake, where the mighty Kennebec River starts its long journey to the ocean. Every night, Cole ties Bonnie tightly to the dock so that she will be safe and sound until the next morning. But one evening as the moon shines over the lake, the rope’s knot comes loose and Bonnie drifts away. Bonnie is helpless as the river’s strong current pulls her downstream. Frightened but determined to stay calm until she can find her way back home, Bonnie sets out on a journey down the Kennebec River to the mighty Atlantic Ocean and along the New England coast. As Cole and Clare search for Bonnie all along Moosehead Lake and beyond, the toy boat must deal with bullies, rapids, the swirls of an eddy, and the dangers of a rip current. All the way, Bonnie wonders whether she will ever be reunited with her friends. In this charming, touching tale, a little toy boat struggling to find her way back home learns to never give up hope, value friendship, and remember that it is always darkest before the dawn. This book about making it through hard times is truly for all ages: Children, Teens, Adults, and the Elderly. For a new approach to spending quality time, try reading it to those elderly who can no longer read for themselves.

About the Author

Charles Ferguson Barker is a geologist and the author and illustrator of several award-winning children’s books. He has a degree in geology from Arizona State University and a graduate degree in geology from Boston University. While in graduate school, he spent his summers doing fieldwork along the coast of Maine, the setting for Bonnie the Friendship Sloop.