Ophelia and the Pet Peeve

About the Book

Ophelia is smart and fun loving but most of all, she’s very independent.  One thing she isn’t, however, is perfect.  Sometimes her independent streak gets her into a little bit of trouble.  The good news is that she always manages to learn something in the end.  In this story, Ophelia brings something unusual home from school – a pet peeve.   The pet peeve seems innocent at first so Ophelia convinces her mom to let her keep it.  But when Ophelia pays too much attention to it, the pet peeve begins to grow into something that she can no longer control.  Will Ophelia learn what to do in time to keep the pet peeve from taking over her life?

About the Author

John Arguello was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1969 and graduated from Bradley University in 1990. He went on to land a job teaching elementary school for many years and currently works in curriculum design.   John grew up in a family of teachers and has spent his entire life as a teacher and storyteller.  Growing up as the “big brother”, he would find creative uses for everyday words and then use them to make up silly bedtime stories for his little sisters on sleepless nights.    He never thought about putting his words into print until, many years later,  he wrote and illustrated a story for his goddaughter and niece, Olivia.  It instantly became her favorite bedtime story book and he soon found himself with a growing little audience.   He draws his inspiration from the independent and effervescent personalities of all his nieces and nephews -- as well as his experiences as a teacher.  Many of his favorite stories are about the social learning that occurs once you walk out the school doors and enter the big – and sometimes scary – world on the outside.   John currently resides in Oak Park, Illinois with his wife Stacey.