Walking through the woods after reading Leaf Town Forever, I couldn’t help but see the forest floor differently. Acorns, twigs, curled leaves, and bits of moss weren’t just debris anymore; they were treasures waiting for discovery. I started seeing them the way children do: as free toys for the imaginative, the raw materials of cities, currencies, and stories. It’s that same instinct for creation that inspired sisters Kathleen and Beth Rooney to write their debut children’s book, illustrated by local artist Betsy Bowen and rooted in a real-life pandemic playground.
Leaf Town Forever began in the fall of 2020 in a Chicago suburb, when Beth’s children and their classmates faced pandemic recess without playground equipment. Left to their own creativity, the kids built a miniature world out of leaves, sticks, and imagination.
“They kind of realized that the simplest forms and structures can create a really beautiful, imaginative world and create these memories that just become indelible,” said Beth. “If you have kids of your own that age, you are more in tune with that idea that there’s treasures everywhere.”
The sisters found themselves hanging on every story Beth’s two kids (six and nine at the time) would come home with about their imaginary town. It was an experience so vivid that Kathleen suggested they write about it.
“I said it sounded like we could write an essay and I thought maybe we could come up with something and pitch the New York Times,” Kathleen recalled.
The essay, titled A Strange and Lovely Lesson from Leaf Town, was published and quickly caught the attention of a children’s book agent.
“She reached out and said, would you be interested in making Leaf Town into a picture book?” Kathleen said.
Kathleen has published several books and is a professor at DePaul University. Beth is a photographer and writer. Neither had previously attempted a children’s book, but they eagerly embraced the opportunity to collaborate.
“It was kind of another way for us to keep playing as siblings and as creative people to just keep creating stuff for people to enjoy,” said Beth.
Telling such an imaginative story in a form that would suit a picture book was initially a challenge. The sisters were responsible for the manuscript, which they would then hand over to an artist to illustrate. Leaf Town is a broad concept, and narrowing down the text proved difficult.
“We’d written some just standard prose versions, and they were quite short,” said Kathleen.
The story is simple, and they did not want to overburden it. They realized they did not need to over-explain or add unnecessary filler.
When being “too prosy” wasn’t working and with the desire to give space to the illustrator to, as Beth put it, “do their version of the story,” the sisters decided to present the story in the form of haiku.
“The tradition and origin of the form of haiku is tied to nature,” said Kathleen. “It works perfectly with the simplicity of Leaf Town itself.”
A haiku is a traditional form of Japanese poetry that captures a moment, feeling, or observation, often tied to nature or the seasons. Its classic structure follows three lines: five syllables, seven syllables, and five syllables.
“It gave us that structure we needed to keep it brief and light,” said Beth. “Very much like action.”
From there, there were “millions” of emails exchanged as they passed the poem back and forth. They could also be seen at an outdoor café in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Chicago, counting syllables on their fingers.
“It makes you almost feel childlike in the best way, because you’re counting on your fingers to get the syllables right,” said Kathleen.
Once the manuscript was complete, it was time for someone else to bring Leaf Town to life visually. That role went to Betsy Bowen, a celebrated illustrator and printmaker based in Grand Marais, Minnesota. Although authors typically do not choose their illustrator, Kathleen and Beth were thrilled when their publisher suggested her.
Betsy received the manuscript as plain text, essentially black and white words on a screen. Her task was to interpret the story’s emotional tone and imaginative scope and create a visual world that reflected the spirit of the children who originally created Leaf Town.
Although Betsy has lived in Grand Marais for most of her life, she grew up in the Chicago area. She showed genuine appreciation and curiosity for the story behind Leaf Town Forever.
For Betsy, illustrating Leaf Town Forever was not just about capturing a story. It was about honoring the imaginative resilience of children. The premise captivated her: kids creating a world from leaves and sticks after playground equipment was off-limits during the pandemic.
“They had a chance to reinvent civilization,” she said. “What did kids do? That premise was so interesting to me.”
Betsy’s illustrations in Leaf Town Forever are expressive acrylic paintings that capture the texture and wonder of the natural world. Her palette is earthy and imaginative, with scenes filled with fall leaves, pine needles, feathers, and acorns, all transformed by children into shops, hotels, and even a jail.
“My wish is to make the sum of the parts more than either one alone,” said Betsy. “I don’t feel like I’m just being literal because I don’t think that’s the only way to read something. There’s more to it. Maybe I can add something that shows that, in a way, on a page.”
The artist was able to capture what actual photographs of Leaf Town could not.
Beth had taken photos of the original Leaf Town during the pandemic, hoping to preserve what her children and their classmates had built. But when her kids looked at those images, they said, “That’s not how I remember it.” Their memories had already reshaped the playground world into something more vivid, more alive.
When they saw Betsy’s illustrations, they lit up. “That’s the jail! That’s the hotel!” they said. Her art didn’t just reflect the physical space. It brought Leaf Town to life the same way they had in their imagination on the playground years before.
The University of Minnesota Press will release Leaf Town Forever on October 14. Betsy Bowen will host a meet and greet on Saturday, October 18, at Drury Lane Books in Grand Marais from 11 AM to 1 PM. She plans to include an art activity for the kids attending.
Leaf Town Forever may be just the beginning. The sisters have a few more manuscripts in progress and are currently seeking an agent. While future titles remain under wraps, I couldn’t help imagining sequels like Rock Town Rocks On, Seashell City Sees It All, or Stickburg Stands Tall, each a new chapter in the geography of childhood imagination.
Once you’ve walked through the leaf door, you start seeing stories everywhere. In the twigs, in the moss, in the quiet spaces, play becomes memory and memory becomes art.
Visit kathleenrooney.com for more information on Kathleen’s books, events, essays, and poetry. Beth’s site, bethrooney.com, features her photography and writing. Betsy’s art and books can be found at woodcut.com and her studio in Grand Marais.
