Ardsley Man Honors Wife By Posthumously Publishing Her Book

ARDSLEY, NY — An Ardsley man honored his late wife by publishing a children’s book she had written. Five years ago, Rhoda Fishman Sandler died at the age of 85. Her husband, Henry Sandler, 94, discovered a manuscript among her belongings. He took it upon himself to have the story illustrated and printed.

While he wanted others to enjoy “A Cheese With Whiskers,” the book the longtime librarian wrote in 1990 for her own amusement, he had another motive.

“Rhoda always wanted us to be together,” Henry Sandler said. “During my career as a chemical engineer, I wrote a book which was published by McGraw Hill.

“I thought, ‘Oh, my gosh,’ if I could get Rhoda’s book published, we could be together forever in the Library of Congress,” he said.

The book was published by A Life in Print this year.

“A Cheese With Whiskers,” according to a spokeswoman, is the tale of a mouse named Willy Nilly who wants for nothing. Willy Nilly has plenty to eat, a cozy nest and a home safe from cats and other dangers. But he is bored and has no one to share his good fortune with. The lonely mouse sneaks into his homeowners’ luggage and finds himself in Paris where he discovers dozens of new cheeses, including a special one with “whiskers” which turns out to be the lovely little mouse, Souriette. It is clear from the start they are destined to spend the rest of their days sharing their passion for cheese, and one another.

While Sandler remains unsure where his wife got the inspiration for the main character, he believes she may have penned the tale for their grandson who would have been 4 years old at the time. As for the setting, he said there is no doubt why she chose Paris, the City of Love. The couple spent three years living in France thanks to her urging him to apply for a job with a French company she saw advertised in one of his engineering magazines. Sandler estimates through their more than six-decade marriage they took between 15 and 20 trips to Europe.

“What I love most about the book is how Rhoda’s personality comes through the story, especially her adventurous spirit and passion for traveling,” Sandler says. “She was the love of my life, and it is an honor to share a little bit of her with the world through her writing.”

“A Cheese With Whiskers,” illustrated by Jennifer and Madeline Lange, is available at Amazon.com.

Photo credit: A Life in Print.