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By John Hernandez
Deb Breen is the owner of Sky Island Coffee Roasters in Oracle.
She is a personal trainer who is an avid runner, hiker and mountain biker.
She is also now, a published author.
Deb’s book, Seti the Brave, is an illustrated story in rhyme of Seti a small kitten lost and alone in the desert in Oracle and how she is found and becomes a part of Debra Breen’s family. Deb said she wrote the story for her grandchildren.
When Deb first got the idea to write the story of Seti, she had no thoughts or intentions that it would be something she could have published. She has never written anything for mass publication although she does write from time to time, instructional and inspirational articles on fitness and well-being for her blog: debreen.com.
The inspiration for writing Seti’s story came during a period of mourning for Deb. She was mourning the loss of her little Bichon, Molly. Molly had been in the family for many years and passed away suddenly in August 2019.
“Her little bed was still by my desk and I missed having her quiet presence in that cozy space next to me,” Deb said about the mourning period. “I then began to think how ‘lost’ I would be if I did not have Seti to keep me company and help me adjust to losing Molly. For whatever reason, those moments of sadness and gratitude created in me a desire to tell how lucky I was to have found the lost little kitten of the desert. The words and rhyme for telling Seti’s story came to me over a matter of minutes. After composing her story, I knew I wanted to share the story with my grandchildren. Seti the Brave is the (mostly) true story of how this one lost little kitten found her way into my life, before I even knew I needed her.”
Deb describes Seti as a tortoise shell calico whose distinct facial markings remind her of an outer space alien.
“Sometimes her face looks more like an owl than a cat. She’s a year old now, but she has a delicate, diminutive stature. Her face and markings inform of her little wild nature, but her brave wildness is what brought her safely home to live with me,” Deb said.
If you are wondering about the brave kitten’s name, Seti, it was her markings that gave Deb the name. SETI is an acronym for Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. The SETI Institute is an organization that searches for evidence of extra-terrestrial life and intelligence. Seti was also the name of ancient Egyptian pharaohs and Egyptians were known to use the image of cats in their religion. Considering Deb said that she was never a cat person before finding Seti, the name seems most appropriate.
Deb’s husband, Todd Robert, encouraged her to find a way to get Seti the Brave published. It took a whole year to find a publisher and illustrator for the book. The publisher is a new company, Immerser. Immerser selected Deb’s book as their first children’s book to be published by their company. The illustrator for the book is an artist known as Isza who lives in Poland.
“We at Immerser Jr. are excited to have Deb Breen’s first book as our first children’s book as well. We felt that the story needed to be shared, and the beautiful artwork helps it come alive. Seti is a story your kids won’t forget,” the publisher said.
Seti the Brave is available for sale on Amazon.com (Kindle version is $2.99 and the paperback version is $13). Locally it is for sale from Deb for $9 at Sky Island Roasters 1575 W. American Avenue, Suite C in Oracle.
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Congratulations, Deb, on being published and for finding Seti and bringing her into your family!
John Hernandez lives in Oracle. He is retired and enjoys writing and traveling. He is active in the Oracle Historical Society. He covers numerous public events, researches historical features and writes business/artist profiles.
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