Q&A With Melody Kelly 

My next guest is with children’s author Melody Kelly, who is a former elementary school teacher and the author of the new children’s adventure, Lulu at The Louvre. I was privileged and honored to receive an advanced copy of the book! I finished reading the book last night and it’s so adorable, both the story and the cover artwork! Adults will enjoy reading the story with or to their children! 

Q: Melody, would you like to talk about your new book, Lulu at The Louvre, for those who have yet to read it? 

A: Thank you, Bianca, for this wonderful opportunity to introduce your readers to Lulu! Lulu at The Louvre is the story of a house mouse named Lulu who lives in an old house in England where she spends her days longing for adventure and napping in a trunk in the attic. One day she is awakened from her nap to find that the trunk is moving, and two humans are trying to steal it. They want a famous painting that is stored inside. Lulu hits her head when the trunk gets jostled going down the stairs, and when she finally awakens, she finds herself at The Louvre Museum in Paris and involved in solving the mystery of the stolen painting.  It’s a story of adventure, courage, and friendship.  

Q: I know you said this story came about from your trip to Paris. What made you want to have your main character, Lulu, be a mouse? 

A: Many years ago on a vacation in Paris with my family, we visited The Louvre. I spied a tiny mouse peeking out of a hole in a wall on one side of a gallery and scurrying across the floor, dodging human feet, as it made its way to the other side of the room where it disappeared. I couldn’t get that little mouse out of my head, and I began thinking of what it would be like to be a mouse at such a famous, busy place like The Louvre. Lulu was born from those imaginings. As a child, I was always a fan of stories where toys came to life or animals acted like humans, and Lulu brought me back to the kind of stories I loved when I was young.

Q: With how this book ends, and finding out online that Lulu at The Louvre is the first in a series called the Lulu Mystery Series, how many books will there be in this series where we follow Lulu on her adventures?

A: I have so many ideas for Lulu and the places she can go, so it is impossible to say exactly how many there will be. The second Lulu mystery is already written, and I have the plot for the third and fourth already in my head. There are so many museums all over the world that would be fun to write about and explore with Lulu, so there’s the possibility of many more books.  

Q: Children today are more interested in their electronic tablets than they are in reading, which I think is very sad and unfortunate. As both a children’s author and former grade-school teacher, what advice would you give to parents wanting their children to become readers?

A: As with anything, if we want children to read, we need to model that for them.  They should see the parents and adults in their lives reading and talking about books. As a teacher and a mom, reading aloud was something I enjoyed immensely, and I always found that children loved it too. Sharing books together is a great way to encourage reading as a family. Making visits to the library or bookstore a priority is also important. And above all, we should not forget that while reading is a hugely important skill, it is also worth showing children that it’s not just a school subject. Sometimes we forget that we want to show children how to be lifelong readers of books, not just students who get good grades in reading. If we show them the joy of getting lost in a story, maybe their screens won’t hold as much interest.  

Q: When do you expect book 2 of the Lulu Mystery Series to come out? Can you reveal any small details about it without spoiling what happens in this current book?

A: The second Lulu book should be out late next year. I won’t give away much, but I will say that Lulu is going to have the chance to discover how Miss came to have the painting, Poppies, in the first place. And, of course, her travels will continue.

Melody Kelly’s new children’s book Lulu at The Louvre is currently available from Amazon and all online book retailers in hardcover and eBook, and can be ordered through your favorite local bookstore.

You can connect with Melody on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MelodyKellyAuthor

Instagram: @MelodyKellyWrites

X: @MelodyK_Writer