Have you ever had a jingle or rhyme run around in your brain and you just can’t seem to get rid of it? That’s the origin of our book title.
The pickleball players in Jackson, Michigan are avid players who suffered the same fate. Members of the Jackson Area Pickleball Association are always looking for a good time on the court, and they began chanting the phrase, “Bend Your Knees, Louise!” when they saw another player at the kitchen line hit the ball into the net.
They know the secret to successful play at the kitchen line is to bend your knees, so you “lift” the ball over the net, creating the arc needed to clear the net. The friendly reminder has become a common phrase, and it has now been immortalized in this book!
Karen and Jackie have developed a wonderful relationship playing pickleball. We both love to engage others in our favorite pastime, pickleball. One day after pickleball, we casually brought up a children’s book about this sport. The rest is history, as they say.
Learning to put a game into rhyme isn’t as easy as it may sound, but we were relentless in making it happen. Edit upon edit-and then more edits-took place before we handed our manuscript over to our award-winning illustrator, Kevin Fales. His art captured our vision perfectly, and we eagerly awaited every sketch and then every painting.
Although our book project began long before COVID-19 became a household word, our work with Kevin took place during its darkest days, giving us something creative and happy to focus on. We are enormously proud of our joint venture.
