Talented Teacher-Parent Duo Publishes “HARRY & ARNEY’S EPIC ISLAND ADVENTURE”

I am beyond excited to share my newly published book with you, Harry and Arney’s Epic Island Adventure. For the past nine years, the children of MBTS children have enriched my life with humour, love and inspiration to spare, so I decided to channel some of my reserves into this passion project that I created alongside Tarah Lawson, who is an MBTS mom and illustrator extraordinaire. 

Here is a brief synopsis of the book: 

Harry and Arney’s Epic Island Adventure is about a young hermit crab named Harry who lives at Rum Point. Despite his charmed and chill Caribbean lifestyle, Harry is feeling down because he is dissatisfied with his plain shell. Harry gets carried off by a frigate bird who deposits him in West Bay, where he meets a feisty anole lizard named Arney and the pair set off on a cross-island adventure. Along the way, they encounter a cast of unique characters and visit iconic locations in Grand Cayman. By the end of the story, Harry has learned some great lessons about friendship, gratitude and valuing the truly important things in life.  

As mothers, one of our main goals was to create a book that is entertaining for both children and adults. With inside jokes and references that only “islanders” will get, and characters like a vegan surfer chicken and two mangy street cats from West Bay who are both named Bo, our fingers are crossed that we have succeeded.  

As a teacher, one of my main goals was to create a book that is as educational as it is entertaining, hence the glossary at the back providing definitions and explanations of words/terms/colloquialisms that appear in orange throughout the book.    

Although there are many, here are a few of the things that I love about working at MBTS which have, in turn, ignited my desire to write and inspired the content of the story: 

• MBTS has always given me the freedom to be creative and come up with novel and engaging ways to teach children. 

• MBTS has a brilliant virtues program that builds character, cultivates empathy and responsibility, and makes children feel connected to one another, the community, the rest of humanity and the entire planet earth.  

So it is no coincidence that the virtue of gratitude is the underlying theme/moral of Harry and Arney’s Epic Island Adventure. And grateful is exactly how I feel – for living in the Cayman Islands; for being part of the MBTS community; and for being able to spend my days in the company of such amazing children! 

– Ms. Mia, Casa One Teacher