Book brings Columbia alive
By Mimi M. Maddock
mimi@TheColumbiaStar.com

Illustration by Paula Hayne Bowers

"My dad was my ambassador to Columbia. He has always had a special place in his heart for our city," said Caroline Coleman Bennett who grew up in Columbia and attended Hammond School, Hand Middle School, and Dreher High School.

Bennett recently combined her father Charley Coleman's love for Columbia and her children's adventurous spirits. The result was Charley's Columbia Backyard, an adventure between two seven-year-old neighbors who explore the city.

The book was a natural for Bennett who graduated from Clemson University in business management and communication. After graduation, she wrote speeches for the president of the Charleston Chamber of Commerce. She also wrote the Chamber's newsletter and freelanced for several magazines including Palmetto Parent and Sandlapper.

Bennett and her husband, Paul Zeke Bennett, have been married 12 years and have three children: Coleman, seven; Anna Young, five; and William, three. When Zeke's job with Carolina First moved the family to Columbia, Bennett searched bookstores for children's books on the capital city and found none. This sparked the idea of Charley and Bernard, a true story of Bennett's son Coleman and his friend Toni OgunFowora who he introduced to Columbia. "I couldn't believe how many things Columbia has for families to do," she said.

Charley and Bernard become beasts at Riverbanks Zoo in Charley's Columbia Backyard.

In the book, Charley and Bernard don't just visit EdVenture, they become doctors and work on patients. At the State House and Fort Jackson the two become soldiers, and at Riverbanks Zoo, they become beasts in the jungle. Their creativity is just the beginning of what a child could imagine touring the 12 places highlighted in the book which is written on a third grade level in rhyme with recurring text.

A special section called Charley's Treasure Hunt at the back of the book is a list of things a child can find in the pictures like a ladybug and two caterpillars.

Charley's Columbia Backyard is more than an adventure. It is a story about friendship that has prompted several schools to use it to teach during Friendship Week. Charley befriends Bernard whom he hears crying next door. Bernard says there is nothing to do in Columbia, and immediately the adventures begin. The two become great friends. Every place they go they find friendly neighbors.

Each book has a bookmark in it with Charley's Checklist. When a child has done everything on the checklist, he can redeem it at Columbia Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau and be proclaimed one of Columbia's Junior Ambassadors. A coupon with all of the places Charley and Bernard visit will be available for $75 for a family of five and $40 for a family of two. Only 500 of these will be printed. Each place featured in the book will do something special in honor of Charley's Columbia Backyard.

Bennett dedicated the book to her mom, Barbara Coleman, her husband, her children, and her dad.

Charleyscolumbiabackyard.com.