Zoo’s On First

"Zoo's On First" was inspired by Jeremy's son, Sawyer, and our collective love for the game of baseball. Sawyer has been playing baseball since he was two and a half, still too young for little league and at a time when most of his peers weren't yet interested in sports. It wasn't until Jeremy, Hilary and Sawyer were at the LA Zoo on one of their frequent trips that Jeremy came up with the idea for this book. They were at the area with the gorillas- Sawyer's favorite animal- when Jeremy noticed one of the gorillas was sitting all alone in a position that looked looked like a catcher'a crouch. This image ignited a spark of inspiration for Jeremy, who then collaborated with his brother Austin on the story of "Zoo's On First." They soon brought in Dave Maulbeck to illustrate and bring this magical story to life. "Zoo's On First" is a story about believing in something, and a boy who loves baseball and the zoo. Combining elements of fantastic realism and the themes of hope and teamwork- "Zoo's On First" follows one boy's journey from feeling left out to overcoming an obstacle with determination and imagination.

Jeremy is a PE teacher and coach living in Los Angeles, CA. Living in LA since 2006, he met his wife, Hilary and they had their son Sawyer. His experiences with Sawyer inspired this book idea.Austin is an actor, writer and producer also living in Los Angeles. He is best known for his work on shows like "Beauty and the Beast" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm." He has written film and TV scripts, as well as a comic book called "The KINETIX" (2018) and a poetry book called "An Actor Without An Audience: Poetry for Artists, Lovers And Everymen" (2011). He and his brother Jeremy have always shared a love of baseball with their father, Arthur. And now Sawyer's love of baseball has inspired this book.Dave is a multi-media artist based in the New York area. He loves storytelling of all kinds, but these days he's specializing in home-brewed animation, DIY comic books and graphic novels, set design, guerilla film production, photoshop for instagram, and comedic acting. Austin and Dave previously collaborated on "The KINETIX" comic books (with Josh Taub).