Seneca resident Timmi Haulbrook Jernigan has combined her love of children, writing and drawing in her first children’s book, “Never, Oh Never, Take a Dinosaur Home” (Courier Publishing, $11.95).

A self-taught artist, Jernigan utilized her talent for many years as an educator in South Carolina, serving in various counties as a teacher, guidance counselor and Web designer.

From an early age, she enjoyed penning and illustrating stories, but it was her own children, Jessica and James, who provided the inspiration for this whimsical tale about a young boy who brings home a stray dinosaur.

“Playful language rolls off each page, providing the reader with rhyming words and vocabulary that build a child’s background knowledge,” says literacy consultant Rebecca M. Moore.

“Never, Oh Never, Take a Dinosaur Home” is available at major online booksellers, including Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.