May 14, 2025
After a year-long collaboration between Clovernook Center, the Scripps Howard Fund, three authors, and a public library makerspace, the first two original publications from the Tactile Literacy Program at Clovernook Center for the Blind & Visually Impaired have launched.
“We’re excited to announce the publication of Juniper and the Red Swoosh, and All About Orion, our first two original print/braille children’s books,” said Samuel Foulkes, director of braille production and accessible innovation. “Bringing original stories to life for visually impaired readers through innovative printing techniques like tactile graphics and 3D models has been a goal for Clovernook Center for many years.”
Juniper and the Red Swoosh, written by Juniper Eisenberg, a third-grade student who is visually impaired, and co-authored by her mother, Chi-Hoon Kim, follows the clever and curious Juniper as she journeys to Corn Market and faces off with a mysterious red creature, using her abacus to solve puzzles and stay on course. Designed to be both fun and educational, the story invites readers to follow along — setting beads on their 3D-Click™ abacus while learning abacus logic. The book is presented in large print with braille overlay, and includes colorful illustrations and calculations created by Eisenberg, along with sidebars that offer step-by-step abacus instructions and a short history of the tool.
All About Orion, was written by Dean Regas, a renowned public speaker, author, educator, national populizer of astronomy and an expert in observational astronomy. Regas learned to explore the night sky while operating the Wolff Planetarium for the Cincinnati Parks and as the astronomer for the Cincinnati Observatory. All About Orion helps young readers with visual impairments explore the most famous stars and constellations in the sky through the use of tactile graphics.
The initial production of these two first-edition books was made possible through a grant from the Scripps Howard Fund.
“Every child should have access to books that meet their needs to experience the magic of reading,” said Meredith Delaney, president and CEO of the Scripps Howard Fund. “The Scripps Howard Fund is proud to support Clovernook Center’s Tactile Literacy Initiative. It’s inspiring to me to see the impact of this innovative work – creating accessible books that can be read by sighted individuals and children with blindness or low vision at the same time.”
The tactile literacy program at Clovernook Center has a global reach and is impacting children with blindness and low vision in the United States and around the world. The program is geared toward creating accessible books that can be read by sighted individuals and people with blindness or low vision at the same time. Dual readers include both print and braille pages by incorporating embossed braille pages inserted between illustrated or print pages to create a shared reading experience.
Both books are available for sale here.
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