Sky Pelin

For more than thirty years, I dreamed of writing a book. Some of my most cherished childhood memories are of my mother reading to me every night before bed as a small child. I carried on that cherished tradition with my own son. Those treasured moments connected three generations through a love of books, and I always hoped that one day I might write a story of my own.

One book has stayed especially close to my heart: Little Fur Family by Margaret Wise Brown. My mom read it to me when I was little, and I still have a copy. Perhaps that's part of why I've always thought of MooMoo, Bubba, and Bear as my own little fur family.

When I finally began writing, I imagined something simple, much like the Little Golden Books I had loved growing up and reading to my son. My inspiration was right in my own backyard: my three beloved black cats, who enjoy sitting on the screened-in porch, watching a curious squirrel scamper along the fence.

Those three furry boys—MooMoo, Bubba, and Bear—became the heart of my story. And that adventurous little squirrel would eventually inspire Aura.

But something unexpected happened as I wrote. The story kept growing. What began as a simple children's picture book slowly evolved into something far greater than I'd originally imagined—a full-length middle-grade fantasy novel filled with mysterious islands, ancient magic, extraordinary technology, and adventures beyond anything I'd envisioned when I first began writing.

Through all those changes, one thing remained the same: my love for my little fur family, who inspired it all. I wanted to capture their spirits in the pages of a book, giving them a place where they could live on forever.

And so, Moon Path Keep became more than the little picture book I'd once imagined. It became an entire fantasy world where my little fur family—and one very determined little squirrel—could have adventures that never truly end.