Linda Roblee Peterson of Denison publishes <i>Raising Tip Top Kids in a Topsy-Turvy World</i>

Some people tell stories because they LOVE to. These people both experience life and watch it as they go through the various stages. They remember the moments, the people, the lessons. And they tell the stories easily, with joy in the telling.

Linda Roblee Peterson of Denison is one of those who joy in telling stories. That joy culminated in the September publication of her first book, Raising Tip Top Kids in a Topsy-Turvy World.

“As long as I can remember, I wanted to write. The dream was always part of my life,” states the author.

And so she did.

After years of writing for herself and others, available time and inspiration visited this busy high school English teacher at the same moment last summer, and she finished the manuscript she’d begun some years earlier. Writers are taught to write about the things that mean most to them, so it was natural that Linda began telling her readers about the adventures and lessons she learned as “Mom” to a remarkable family.

The book is a memoir, but more than a memoir. It is the story of a “put-together” family, and of a couple who set out to raise three biological and six adopted children, a feat that in itself seems fairly daunting. The book, called a “wonderful read” by those who’ve spent time with it, covers more than forty years of the author’s life, and is filled with personal stories that make you smile, remember, test your own principles of parenthood, and, perhaps shed a tear with the tender unfolding of eleven inter-woven lives. “It grabs your heart, and is almost impossible to put down,” one reader wrote.

Linda writes under her maiden name, Linda Roblee, because of a promise she, the older of his two daughters, made to her father some years ago. She told her dad that when she was published she would write using his name.

Not only is Ms. Roblee Peterson a writer, but she is also known by former English and Theater classroom students as a master story-teller in person. In fact, she’s been telling stories about her adventures as a mother, a traveler, a counselor, a teacher, and, above all, a Christian, for years.

“I’ve always felt it was part of our responsibility as teachers to illustrate, expand and enrich our curriculum with stories of our past experiences. I found over the years, that students often asked me, ‘tell us a story’ as a reward for time well spent in the classroom.

“The longer, more fully you live, the richer your pack of stories becomes. Kids seem to enjoy the funny escapades, the heart-warming adventures I’ve had, the places and people I know.”

In fact, a former student who currently works on the North Shore in Alaska, upon reading the book wrote, “It’s classic Ms. Peterson. I don’t know how to explain that, but I heard your voice and the stories were great. Just what I needed. I’ve already quoted you!”

Another reader wrote, “I wanted to tell you that I finished your book—loved every page! Then put it on the shelf with my favorites, some of which are Bro Yen the Heavenly Man, Corrie Ten Boom, Brother Andrew, Lords of the Earth, Bruchko, so you are in good company!"

Raising Tip Top Kids in a Topsy-Turvy World by Linda Roblee is currently available through Outskirts Press, a print-on-demand publisher. It can be ordered from Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com, and Outskirtspress.com/……... It is hoped that the book will soon be available in local Christian and secular book stores.