The Lost (and Found) Balloon

Where do balloons go when you let them loose? Find out in this whimsical, imaginative tale, winner of the General Mills Spoonful of Stories contest.

Molly O’Doon ties a note to her red balloon, lets it loose, and off it goes on a buoyant adventure. Who will answer Molly’s letter? Someone in a different state or a faraway country? Or maybe, a new friend much closer than she could ever imagine.

The Lost (and Found) Balloon is the winner of the 5th annual Cheerios® New Author Contest. Selected from more than 8,000 entries by a team of editors, teachers, librarians, and General Mills staff, The Lost (and Found) Balloon will also appear in a bilingual (English/Spanish) mini-paperback edition in 1.5 million specially marked boxes of Cheerios.

Celeste Jenkins was born and raised in Southern California, where she enjoyed teaching elementary school. She now lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with her husband, Mark, and is a stay-at-home mom for her two little balloon-loving girls.

Maria Bogade is an illustrator whose work has been published in countries around the globe. After having studied Audiovisual Media at the University of Media in Stuttgart she worked as a freelance animation artist on award-winning projects, including The Gruffalo and Princess’ Painting, before pursuing her dream of being a children’s book illustrator. She lives with her family in a tiny town in Germany.