A timeless and classic children’s story, Nelson Bear and the Yellow Umbrella was originally written c.1955 by Norfolk Island historian and author, Merval Hoare, for her young daughter, Ann Merval Hoare.
Ann was regularly told the story of Nelson Bear as a child and it became an important childhood memory for her. As an adult, she decided to give Nelson Bear new life, taking the old typewritten pages and showing them to acclaimed Norfolk Island illustrator Tracey Yager. Yager created a series of sweet and charming illustrations to accompany the story, in which she captured Nelson Bear perfectly - as can be seen from the resemblance between Nelson Bear in the illustrations and the photograph of the original bear. Ann then approached Captain Honey to help create and produce the story as a professionally published children’s book.
Nelson Bear will now have an opportunity to live beyond the aged pages of a typewritten manuscript, we hope, to be told to children all over the country.