The Nipkins Vol. I

By Francis Eugene Wood
Illustrated by Robert W. McDermott
Paperback, 172 pages
ISBN: 0-9657047-6-9

About the story:

A woodsman is befriended by tribes of minute forest dwellers while alone in the wilderness. He learns of their origin and comes to know many of the little people by name. The Nipkins relate their adventures and tribal lore with the gentle old man they call the white giant.

The reader learns that there are many tribes of Nipkins scattered throughout the North American forests. You’ll meet the people of the rocks, the barkies, and the bird people. Characters such as Shala the Traveler, Isna and Sora will become as old friends. A 126-word glossary helps in name and place pronunciation. And a map of the lands of the Nipkins is fun to examine as the narrative progresses.

“The Nipkins is a journey” stated author Francis Eugene Wood. “My research took over 40 years of walks in quiet places where the sound of wind and water is like the whisperings of ancient storytellers. I listened and wrote down what they said.”

Note from the author:

The Nipkins was so much fun to write that I was sad when it was finished. It is truly an inspired work. The stories came to me in dreams and wakeful periods when there were no limits to my imagination. This is when I love to write. It is pure.

There is something for everyone in this book. Something for the child in each of us which should never be lost.

I hope that The Nipkins will touch the youthfulness within you all. And that your hearts will leap when someone says, “Listen, there is something in the forest….”

The artist:

Robert W. McDermott is one of the finest artists I’ve had the pleasure to know. His work on The Fodder Milo Stories proved to me that he was the one to interpret The Nipkins (a book I had held back for about ten years). His paintings and sketches of the tribes of Nipkins are wonderful. His attention to detail is so keen you’ll be counting the legs on lady bugs.

I am proud that Bob’s work will grace the covers and inside pages of a work which is special to me and close to my heart.