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That’s what it says on the cover, anyway. When you open the alphabetical, artistic ode to Pleasanton, P actually stands for … well, maybe the creators wouldn’t want me to spoil it.
Kori Barton gave me an early peek at the book she and husband Sammy were finalizing so I’d consider writing an endorsement for the back before it went to the press. Looking at the painting, poem and prose on the first page (I’m sure you can guess what they picked for “A”), I was hooked and happily obliged:
“P is for Pleasanton is a beautiful celebration of this community’s past, present and future. The vibrant artwork and engaging stories reflect the heart of Pleasanton that has been beating with passion and pride for more than 150 years.”
The seventh installment in the Bartons’ “Hometown Highlights Alphabet Series” showcasing Bay Area cities, “P is for Pleasanton” follows their familiar format of assigning one identifier per letter intrinsic to that community. They were spot on for Pleasanton.
“Something I particularly love about the Pleasanton book is how it captured many of the people who made a difference in the city over the years,” Kori Barton told me after their book release last week.
The couple made an unassuming entry into local pictorial history books, but they’ve found their niche and are running with it – even though that wasn’t the original vision.
“I have always reveled in the delightful combo of words and art and had a longstanding desire to write and illustrate a picture book for kids. Alas, with no solid ideas, nothing happened,” Barton told me. “So, when it eventually dawned on me while doing yardwork that we didn’t have easy access to kid-friendly books to teach our own young’uns about Concord’s local history, I realized that I could couple my dream with a solution to a problem (two birds, one stone!)”
After activating, as she put it, the “figure-out-how-to-write-and-illustrate-a-children’s-book mode”, the wife-and-husband team found their recipe: an “A to Z” storytelling approach where Kori paints the illustrations and pens the historical anecdotes and Sammy writes most of the poems.
Their Hometown Highlight “C is for Concord” dropped in December 2023, designed as a one-off. But sometimes “B” is for best-laid plans.
“We had no intention of writing additional books, but when surrounding cities learned about it, they asked for books celebrating their cities, too,” Barton said. “Thus, the series was born, and it has been a joy for us to use our talents to give thanks to God and give the gift of reading, art, and history to families in our communities.”
Each book takes about six months of work on their hobby (“many early mornings and late nights … hundreds of hours”), starting with the process of whittling a laundry list of the people, places and stories that make up the city’s identity down to 26 subjects, one per letter. They connect with historical societies, small businesses, mayors and other key sources as part of their research.
Then their creative efforts begin. “I love carefully painting each illustration knowing that, once published, the picture book will be a sort of art gallery for someone’s lap. That makes me so glad!” she said. “They are truly a labor of love to our community, and we hope it makes many families smile to see their city on display in a way that all ages can enjoy.”
Their series includes Concord, Walnut Creek, Clayton, Brentwood, Martinez, Livermore and now, Pleasanton.
“L is for Livermore” published last year, No. 6 in the series.
“It was positively a thrill to dive into the town’s history since it was quite a bit different than the cities in the Diablo Valley that we had written about previously,” Barton said. “The industry is so varied and interesting, and what other city can say they have a world-famous, 125-year-old incandescent light bulb that’s still burning?!”
She credited family friend and local resident Donna Dubose with putting the Pleasanton bug in their ear. “Her sweet hand-written list of ideas along with our recent book release highlighting the neighboring city (Livermore) made ‘P is for Pleasanton’ the logical next book,” Barton said.
And what stood out most as she got to learn more about Pleasanton?
“Mister Rogers’ mom always told him to ‘look for the helpers’, so that’s what I aimed to do in my research,” Barton told me. “I thoroughly enjoy the ‘helpers’ that we were able to showcase: generous Phoebe Hearst, thankful Harry J. Harding, and industrious J.A. Bilz, among others. I hope it encourages our young readers to make a wonderful difference in their communities!”
To see those anecdotes and the full A-to-Z rundown, you’ll have to buy the book for yourself – which you could do online with Amazon, sure, but also at local shops like Towne Center Books, Meadowlark Dairy and Saltwater Gifts & Books, plus the Museum on Main.
I can reveal, with permission from Barton, that the next city – or should I say, town – they’ll highlight in book form after taking a bit of a break: “D is for Danville”.
You’ll get no spoilers from me … OK, I’ll cave once just for you, our devoted Pleasanton reader: “P” is for parades.
Editor’s note: Jeremy Walsh is the associate publisher and editorial director for the Embarcadero Media Foundation’s East Bay Division. His “What A Week” column is a recurring feature in the Pleasanton Weekly, Livermore Vine and DanvilleSanRamon.com.
