Local author writes book to help kids navigate through the Sunport

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Navigating an airport for the first time can be daunting, but a new book might help give kiddos the confidence they need while visiting the Sunport.

“I think it’s going to give them a sense of recognition that they wouldn’t have had otherwise,” said Rudy M. Garcia, co-author of Curly Crow Goes to the Sunport.

“Curly Crow Goes to the Sunport” is now giving children a glimpse of what it’s like to travel through Albuquerque’s airport.

“‘Let’s do a book about the Sunport for kids’ because I see so many kids coming through the Sunport. Often times, they can be scared, a little nervous,” explained Garcia.

Co-author Rudy Garcia has volunteered as an ambassador for the Sunport for the last six years, a job that involves helping travelers with questions and guiding them through the airport. He recognized an opportunity to help children learn about air travel.

Garcia reached out to Nicholas Aragon, an author who writes a series of books about a bird named Curly Crow.

The two partnered on a new story, in which Curly’s grandma comes to visit Albuquerque and gets injured, so she can’t fly herself home.

Curly has to navigate the Sunport to help Grandma get home, and the story takes kids along each step of the process, from arriving at the curb to passing through security to finding their gate and taking off.

They worked with officials at the Sunport to incorporate the logo, as well as details of the great hall including the artwork, tiles, and well-known clock

“This is really special because people might recognize the clock that’s in the great hall,” said Nicholas Aragon, author of Curly Crow books.

Sunport officials said they welcomed the opportunity.

“I think it’s going to be great, especially for children that haven’t flown before. They start looking at it, and when they get here in real life, they are going to be like, ‘Oh, we have seen that statue in the Curly Crow book,'” said Leah Black with the Albuquerque International Sunport.

The book is for kids ages 4 to 10. There’s also an activity book available.

“Curly Crow is about community, and this book was, you know, an effort to kind of bring the community together, tie in the artwork that is in the Sunport, the ambassador’s different people that work here at the Sunport that make this experience what it is,” said Aragon.

Aragon said he’s working on selling the book at the Sunport. For now, he will have an official release on Saturday at the Downtown Grower’s Market from 8 to 12.

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