Martha Driscoll Releases Book Honoring the Historic Belle of Louisville

Author and long-time educator Martha Driscoll has recently released the second edition of her book, Nosey's Wild Ride on the Belle of Louisville, and received multiple honors and in the process. Driscoll, who at the age of 91 has formed her own publishing company, Driscoll Publishing, has brought forward an updated edition of her marvelous tale about the Belle of Louisville, the historic river steamboat still working on the Ohio River today. The book tells the tale of a mischievous cat that wanders on board the Belle and leads four children on a wild chase all over the boat. This rascal of a cat causes pandemonium wherever he goes. In turn, the children, and the book's readers, learn what makes a steamboat unique.

Driscoll's imaginative book to date has already garnered Story Monsters Approved Books Worth Devouring Seal from Story Monsters Magazine. The Story Monsters Approved! designation was developed by Five Star Publications, Inc. publisher of Story Monsters Magazine, to recognize and honor accomplished authors in the field of children's literature, as well as children's products that inspire, inform, teach, or entertain. Nosey's Wild Ride on the Belle of Louisville has also earned the Mom's Choice Awards Honoring Excellence Gold Medal.

Driscoll, who retired in 1995 from the faculty of Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky, authored Nosey's Wild Ride as a tribute to the steamboat she has known and loved nearly her entire life. The Belle of Louisville is the only steamboat in the country built during the Great Steamboat Era (1820s to the 1920s) that is still cruising. Driscoll even attended her senior prom aboard this venerable riverboat, which was built only two years after the sinking of the Titanic during a major world war and at a time when the US economy was still very much based on agriculture.

Driscoll noted, "For almost 150 years, steamboats ruled the rivers and served an important role in the development of our country. This wonderful old 'gal' still runs today and I believe kids and people of all ages can't fail to be enchanted by its wonderful attributes: the sound of the water in the paddlewheel, the music of the calliope, the working sound of the steam engine and the classic appeal of its whistle. There isn't another experience quite like it! I wrote this book because I wanted children to learn about the Belle, about steamboats and the special experience they offer."

Driscoll's book includes the whimsical ink and colored pencil drawings of graphical designer Susan Andra Lion, as well as a Seek-&-Find activity for young readers. Nosey's Wild Ride on the Belle of Louisville is available through many channels, including http://www.satiama.com/noseyswildride and through many local independent bookstores. For more information about The Belle of Louisville, please visit http://www.belleoflouisville.org/

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