Trains, Books, Authors and More

It was a perfect Saturday afternoon, in the quaint New England town of Essex, as visitors of the River Valley Junction got an extra special treat; the chance to meet award winning author and photographer of books for children, Walter Wick. He was on hand for the afternoon, in the train station, signing copies of his newest book, “Can You See What I See? Toyland Express.”

“This is really one of the coolest signings for me,” said a very happy Wick. “I have spent such a long time on this book, which is centered around a simpler version of an old steam train and now to be standing next to the real thing is very cool.”

Wick’s book, the eighth in his collection of his, “Can You See What I See?” series is a search and find narrative about the life of a toy train. The story begins in a toy maker’s shop, where the train was born and travels through the pages recreating the journey this toy takes, inevitably ending up in the attic of his first owner’s home, only to be sold at a garage sale, to start a new life of being played with once again.

Seven year-old Matthew Sinofsky, who traveled from Suffield to see his favorite author in “real life” was very excited to get a signed copy of this colorful, visually exciting book, which is sure to be his new favorite.

“I really like these books because you get to search for stuff in the pictures and the pictures look really good,” said Sinofsky. “I was very excited to come here today because I wanted to see what he (Wick) looked like and learn more about him.”

“We thought this book would be the perfect pairing for those who were taking rides on the holiday trains,” said Susan Dee, marketing director for the Essex Steam Train. “The story is such a beautiful one and it is so fitting for the holidays and the train, we are very excited to have Walter here today and so are our visitors. This book is a perfect keepsake remembrance of the day and the special memories our visitors make on our train rides.”

Wick, who is the co-creator, along with writer Jean Marzollo, of the “I Spy,” books, is a part-time resident of Essex. He has always been fascinated by puzzles, science, games and illusions and has channeled his artistic abilities to create books that children of all ages enjoy and share.

“This book took me about ten months to process, create and photograph,” explained Wick. “I do the writing as I go.”

Wick worked with two full-time artists as well as four freelance artists to help create and design the scenes for his book, from the ground up. There are essentially 12 different scenes, in a progressing time line, which needed to include the weathering and aging of the train as the story progresses.

“I can’t tell you how much seeing the kids here and hearing how much they love and enjoy the books is an affirmation for all the hard work, time and effort I put into these books,” said a grateful Wick. “These kids could just look for the objects and be done with it, but to hear that they really get it, they enjoy the story and they appreciate the challenge of finding the hidden objects, is a really cool thing for me.”

To see Wicks photos featured in large scale, go to the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, CT from January 28 to April 22, 2012. A list of his books and more information about Wick can be found at www.walterwick.com.

For more information about the Essex Steam Train go to www.essexsteamtrain.com.