Newtown resident and children’s book author Lisa Yu visited The Toy Tree for a special book reading and signing event on Saturday, March 29.

Children joined by their parents and caretakers sat on cozy mats towards the front of the store while Yu read her books, My Daddy Is a Firefighter and My Mommy Is a Firefighter.

The companion books come from a very real place for Yu, as she explained that her children’s dad is a firefighter. When her children were younger, Yu said they did not really understand what he was doing or why he was gone for long periods of time. Yu wanted to help them understand and came up with the idea to write a book that would help explain this to children.

“I wanted them to understand that even though daddy was at work, he still cares about them and he’s coming back,” Yu said.

Even for children whose parents aren’t firefighters, Yu said it can still be exciting for them to learn about the job.

After the book reading, Yu handed children little craft bags with coloring pages and stickers inside.

The Toy Tree owner Tracy Schmid said they knew Yu was a local author and invited her to read her books. Yu also had the idea to invite local firefighters for a Touch-A-Truck event to pair alongside the book readings.

Families got to meet Newtown Hook & Ladder Lieutenant Tim Gies, Assistant Chief Dan Gindraux, and firefighter Rachael Gindraux, who were excited to tell them about their experiences as firefighters. Afterwards, Newtown Hook & Ladder members carefully helped families climb into their fire truck parked outside The Toy Tree to get a close look at what it looks like from the inside.

This event was a long time coming for Yu, who said that she’s wanted to get more involved with the community. She released the books in 2019 and had done a few author visits before the COVID-19 pandemic. Yu said that things have quieted down since having her third child and she had been really trying to make more time to share her books with the community.

Since Yu said she frequently comes to The Toy Tree with her three children, she thought, “why not offer some type of opportunity?”

Yu added, “The goal is to really just help families and build a love of reading, to teach them about different jobs and possibilities.”

Yu said she’s excited for her new book, which she hopes will come out around June, that will focus on moms.

“So I’m also excited to do more events in the future,” Yu said.

For more information about Lisa Yu or her books, visit myparentsjob.com.

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.