MOUNT VERNON — Rupert the rabbit is back, and the colorful imagery by local artist Tonia Osborn once again adds visual depth to the written word.
Book two of Rupert’s Tales continues the rabbit’s quest to learn about Old World traditions of Ireland and Old England, and the newly released activity book is filled with coloring pages, puzzles and games created by Osborn, owner of The Red Z Gallery in downtown Mount Vernon.
Serendipity, perhaps, describes how Osborn became a successful illustrator for the “Rupert’s Tales: The Wheel of the Year” series.
She always liked doing art, but her first experience with illustrating was in fifth-grade. As part of a young author’s series, children would write their own books and illustrate them.
“Then they got to meet real authors who would come in,” said Osborn, “so I did that and I won and I loved it. But I never thought that it would be anything more than that.”