The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

IF there is anything to take away from the book "Three Young Pigs" it is the message that the right choices will always lead to great rewards.

The new faith-based children's book, written by Bahamian Lisa R McCartney, tells the story of three little pigs as they embark on a journey to find the key to true success.

Their quest leads the three young pigs to the Master Pig, who gives them specific instructions to follow. Two of the pigs choose to ignore his warnings, resulting in certain consequences for them. The third pig, however, chooses to follow Master Pig's instructions and he discovers the secret to success, and it is not at all what he expected.

For the first-time author, the inspiration to write and publish "Three Young Pigs" came from a desire to see change in the country's communities, as she believes people's morals and the values of the Bahamian society on a whole are declining.

"If we want to see lasting, permanent change in our communities, we must invest in our children. We need to encourage and train children to make the right choices, choices that are not just temporal, but that affect their eternity. Hence, the book 'Three Young Pigs' which encourages children to do so," said Mrs McCartney.

She said the book teaches children that no matter how challenging some situations may seem at first, stick with what is right and you will be rewarded.

"Children and adults reading the book will identify with at least one of the pigs. They will see the consequences of each pig as being a realistic consequence for themselves, if like that pig, they continue along that path. It is an allegory with a hidden, yet true message. Everything in the book is what God wants children and adults to know about following the right path," said the author.

Mrs McCartney, a former science and family life junior and high school teacher at C H Reeves, said she left traditional education to follow her dream of homeschooling her children, Krysten and Daniel.

As her kids entered onto the later years of their home education, Mrs McCartney began to pursue another of her dreams - to write faith-based story books for children. This dream is closely tied to the ministry that she and her husband, Kino McCartney, share as leaders of the Children's Ministry at Christ Community Church.

As children read her adaptation of a traditional fairy tale, Mrs McCartney hopes simplicity of the allegories will enable them to fully understand the importance of following the words of Jesus in order to find true success in life.

"This is a first venture for me in the area of writing, however, my husband Kino and I have been ministering to children and youth for over 20 years. It feels fulfilling to see the book published and in stores. 'Three Young Pigs' is a God initiative and a God-birthed idea. It was almost not published, but I thank God I saw it through," she said.

Since debuting the book, Mrs McCartney said she has received lots of positive feedback, with both kids and and their parents expressing an appreciation for the story.

"The pigs were actually there at the book launch in person. The children were ecstatic. Children and parents are still telling me how wonderful the launch was and how their child cannot put the book down. Additionally, we launched a Facebook page that is doing very well. We just finished a 'Three Young Pigs' photo competition that resulted in two children being rewarded with prizes for the most likes. So the feedback has been great," the author said.

"Three Young Pigs" is now available locally at Logos Bookstore and at Chapter One, and also online via Facebook.com/ThreeYoungPigs, on amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, iBooks, xulonpress.com/bookstore and from the author herself.