By Mallory Mattingly
Harry Winkler just wrote a new children’s book,
Winkler is dyslexic, which has kept him from being able to read well. Now that he’s older, he set out to write 4o books.
“It amazes me. Outside of my family, outside of our puppies, I am the proudest that my name is on this book,” the HAPPY DAYS actor told the TODAY SHOW.
“When the Pond Squad is invited to participate in the Emerald Pond Games, they can’t wait to compete,” a synopsis of . “Playing sports, making new friends, and spending time with Maxwell ― Emerald Pond’s cool mallard duck ― sounds like a perfect afternoon to Willow. But when Maxwell mysteriously disappears in the middle of a game, the animals know something’s wrong.”
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“With all the strange plastic items floating around the pond, Willow is sure Maxwell is in danger. Fortunately, Detective Duck is on the job, solving these puzzling mysteries before they get out of hand and destroy another habitat!” the synopsis continues. “The Pond Squad will have to work together to clean up their environment and rescue Maxwell in this charming new mystery.”
His first book was Hank Zipzer: The World’s Greatest Underachiever, which was published in 2004 and is now a 17-book series.
It actually inspired Duck Detective.
“Well, [wife] Stacey is doing the puzzle, and I walk in, I pick up a piece and I put it in and walk out,” Winkler told PEOPLE. “And [co-writer] Lin [Oliver] called and said, ‘Hey, remember that Hank Zipzer had to take a book out of the library and it was called Detective Duck? Wouldn’t that be a great character? And as a matter of fact, we were doing a jigsaw puzzle of a beautiful picture of a beautiful pond in New Hampshire.’ I said, ‘I know where she lives!’ And I took a picture of the puzzle, sent it to Lin. Detective Duck was born as a book.”
His Detective Duck series even received a STARRED review from School Library Journal which read, “This entertaining sequel is recommended for chapter book read-alouds, and for those who appreciate children’s stories that carry a gentle message of environmental awareness.”
Winkler was recently inducted into the TV Hall of Fame, where he told his audience: “You are never too young to dream.”
In his speech, Winkler said he “would lie in bed and would dream, I would will myself to be an actor. And my mother, a very short German person, came in with a hairbrush…and said, ‘You’re too young to dream.’ I never let the dream out of my mind. I failed my way right through high school.”
He concluded, “I’m living my dream. What I am the most proud of is to be in a hall of fame for television that has been so good to me. I’m still at the table. What I want to say to you is that you’re never too young to dream!”
Winkler’s story is an inspiring reminder to keep dreaming, no matter your age.
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