Photograph by Kathy De La Torre
Vanya Jackowski (left) and Kristen Barrett co-teach a third-grade class at Saratoga Elementary School so that they can each spend time on the business they co-own, Hedgehogbooks.com.
Saratoga teachers create new website that reviews books
By Rebecca Ray
When Saratoga Elementary School teacher Vanya Jackowski was pregnant with her first daughter 18 years ago, she had no one to give her advice about what children's books to buy her child. Luckily, she found a way to fill that void, for herself and others, with Hedgehogbooks.com--her own online children's bookstore.
Although Jackowski had thought of starting a catalog that would give advice about children's books, she didn't seriously consider starting her own business until after she had raised her children. About a year and a half ago, her husband, Steve, who works for a software company, encouraged her to start an online business.
But Jackowski knew she didn't want to do it alone. So she asked fellow Saratoga Elementary School teacher Kristen Barrett to join her in the venture. Both Jackowski and Barrett live in the Santa Cruz area.
"Because of my love for books and my love for teaching, it seemed like a great opportunity," said Barrett, who lives in Aptos. "Anything to do with books and children, for me, was such a great fit."
Barrett and Jackowski started the company in January 2000, and Hedgehogbooks.com went online in December. Jackowski is the president and CEO and Barrett is the vice president of marketing.
Since December, the two have been running the online business from their homes. They divide their time between reviewing about one book a day, answering questions, checking book availability, dealing with technological issues, getting the word out and updating the site. Kathy Long of Katandmouse.com in Felton, created the site. Their distributor, Koen Book Distributors Inc., makes sure titles are plentiful, Jackowski said.
In addition to a book store, the site features a chat room and a bulletin board that is divided into two sections, "Ask the Teacher," where teachers respond to each other's questions, and "Ask Hedgie," where parents ask Barrett and Jackowski about the best choices in children's books. Each year, Barrett and Jackowski give the Hedgie Award to the best read-aloud children's picture and chapter books.
Although the business also sells standard literature, its main focus is on books that can be read aloud, Barrett and Jackowski said. They have created reading lists and reviews, which parents and children can also write, and plan to have o-line discussions with authors of popular children's books.
According to Barrett and Jackowski, their reviews differ from blurbs on the backs of books in that, in addition to providing background, they recommend age ranges. Just because a child can read a certain book doesn't mean the content is appropriate, Jackowski said.
Each weekday, either Barrett or Jackowski works on the site at home, while the other one teaches the third-grade class. They have worked out a contract with the Saratoga Union School District in which the district pays each of them half of what they would get paid on a full-time basis.
But it's hard to draw the line between where one career ends and the other begins. Barrett and Jackowski use their class as a test market for the books they sell and review and ask input on the book selection and website from other teachers.
So far, Barrett and Jackowski have made a few thousand dollars through book orders. Within the year, they plan to add more screens to the chat room and have international delivery. Although they have received requests from as far away as South Africa, their distributor only delivers books in the United States.
Barrett and Jackowski also signed a deal with Hallmark for a gift certificate program that will be ready to use on March 1.
Saratoga, California Since 1955
