MCCALL — In the heart of downtown McCall sits Barn Owl Books, a cozy independent bookstore that shelves everything from local history to whimsical tales — including one about the town’s legendary lake monster, Sharlie.
Idaho author Craig Vroom wrote Discovering Sharlie, telling the story through the eyes of two young detectives.
“Jenny and Liv were the best of detectives. Their clients had rated them highly effective,” Vroom writes.
WATCH | Meet Craig Vroom and Christa Brown at Barn Owl Books
“It’s a girl, detective agency called the Lucky Penny Detective Agency, and they got a call from Scotland from an inspector at Scotland Yard, and he says we haven’t seen Nessie, that’s what they called the Loch Ness monster, we haven’t seen her in years. Can you come out and help us find her?" Vroom explained.
The book follows the detectives on a hunt for Nessie, and they end up finding Sharlie too.
RELATED | McCall Winter Carnival sculptures showcase 'Sharlie' the lake monster
“I’ve got big bluish whales and fast flying fish, Aberdeen albacore who eat from a dish. Highlander herrings that really get messy, but I have never, not ever, had a creature named Nessie,” Vroom reads from the story.
Christa Brown, the manager at Barn Owl Books, says the imaginative tale has quickly become a store favorite.
“Discovering Sharlie is a wonderful children’s book, and I think not just for children. It’s just a fantastic story,” Brown said.
She said the shop serves as a community hub, especially during the annual McCall Winter Carnival.
“We love Winter Carnival, it’s probably one of our favorite times. It’s so much fun to see so many new faces and visitors," said Brown.
This year’s carnival theme — Where in the World is Sharlie? — has the store stocked with books, stickers and plushies of the legendary lake monster.
RELATED | How sculptors are keeping their snowy Sharlies in good shape at the McCall Winter Carnival
“We searched far and wide for Sharlie and found Sharlie here, so you can have your own Sharlie to take home when you visit McCall.”
WATCH | Vroom read his full rendition of his poem "Where in the World is Sharlie?"
Although the plushies came from Scotland and the book’s detectives travel the globe, for the locals, all roads lead to McCall.
“Rome, Nome, wherever you roam, these are not places that Sharlie calls home. It turns out she lives in the best place of all in a very deep lake in a town named McCall,” Vroom writes in a poem for this year’s carnival.
