Book-launching party Thursday in honor of Dave Keane
n by mary anne mccarthy
special to south valley newspapers
Local children’s author and illustrator Dave Keane has a big smile on his face these days as he anticipates the launch of the first two children’s books in his Joe Sherlock series, which follows the adventures of a kid detective. The series also pays homage to Keane’s love of the Sherlock Holmes mystery novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
The twist with Joe Sherlock is his dogged persistence in the face of many character faults. As Keane emphasized, “He’s got so many issues.”
Peanut allergies, a sensitive stomach and an obnoxiously intelligent little sister all work as stumbling blocks to Joe’s case-solving strategies, but they only endear the reader to root for him in the end. The first book is titled “The Haunted Toolshed,” and the second is “The Neighborhood Stink.”
Keane admitted that his wife, Christine, and his three children, 10-year-old Paris, 8-year-old Jade Allegra, and 4-year-old Sutter Smith are fodder for inspiration in creating many of his story lines.
“We’ll be driving along and my daughter will ask, ‘Why do we have legs?’ or some other off-the-wall statement, and then the ideas start flying,” Keane said.
Beginning with the book launch from 3:30-7pm Thursday at BookSmart in Morgan Hill, Keane is off and running with a West Coast book tour introducing Joe Sherlock to hundreds of potential fans.
But Keane is not one to forget where he came from. He said he remembers scouring the children’s bookshelves of BookSmart after receiving encouragement from his wife to write for children. The bookstore’s owner, Cinda Meister, offered to introduce Keane to local children’s author Karen Beaumont of San Martin. Keane was delighted and agreed with the proviso that Cinda made: “Only if, when you are published, you have your book launch here.”
Beaumont and Keane met, with Beaumont inviting him to her writer’s group, which included Aromas author Paul Fleischman. After reading Keane’s manuscripts, Beaumont introduced him to her New York agent, and he was accepted as a client.
Then the whirlwind began. The first book in the Joe Sherlock series was put up for auction, and Harper Collins bought it along with an agreement for four more. Later, the purchase expanded to a series of eight books. Recently the series has been marketed at the International Bologna Book Fair in Bologna, Italy, with many interested buyers. This is the same book fair that J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series gained international interest and bidding.
The inspiration for the stories came from growing up in suburban San Jose, Keane said, sitting on a curb waiting for something exciting to happen. Joe Sherlock’s sidekick/best friend, Lance Peeker, is a poke at modern-day kids and their obsession with playing video games all day.
The next book is the series is “Joe Sherlock and the Missing Monkey-Eye Diamond.”
“I’m working on book five, possibly with a stolen-painting case, and somewhere in the series there will be mention of ‘Man Laundry,'” Keane said. “You know, a guy puts the laundry in the washer and leaves it a few days, then dries it and has to live with a mildewed shirt.”
