A FORMER resident has produced a tribute to Bermuda ? an illustrated book of poetry inspired by the fond memories she has of her time here.

Pink Sand Poems, a 21-page dedication to the island, is a collaborative effort between poet Jane Barcroft, and artist Cathy Stanz. A selection of four poems and watercolours from the book has also been produced in note and post card form.

Here on holiday this week, the pair celebrated their efforts with a book signing at A.S. Cooper's Ltd.

stems from Ms Barcroft's love affair with Bermuda. A resident between 1961 and 1964, she attended Kindley High while her father was stationed at Kindley Air Force Base.

As an adult, she began visiting the island frequently, often writing a poem in celebration of a particular visit or childhood recollection.

"I just fell in love with Bermuda," said the Memphis, Tennessee resident. "I've written poetry for years and have had encouragement from some of my friends ? both here and abroad ? to put some of my Bermuda poems together."

Ms Barcroft said the idea of having her work illustrated held great appeal.

"Cathy and I have been friends for about ten or 12 years. She's an art teacher and just a really wonderful watercolour artist. I saw some pictures in her home that she'd done and I thought, 'That's what I want them to look like'."

The book features 20 poems and 22 original watercolours of scenes around the island. Ms Stanz painted the scenes, never having visited before. A ten-month project, her sole inspiration was Ms Barcroft's massive collection of Bermuda memorabilia.

"She presented me with a huge amount of pictures, several books, a couple of calendars, picture books of Bermuda, newspaper clippings, photographs from the 60s and of course, her poems," explained Ms Stanz.

"She actually read the poems aloud to me (and taped them) on a small recorder. I would work, listening to her as I went through the pictures, trying to find images that seemed suitable for them. I copy things all the time. It's not unusual for an artist to do portraits from photographs, but I've never done anything on this scale."

Ms Barcroft stressed that the book is a genuine tribute to Bermuda, her poetry inspired by experiences and the friends she made here.

"I'm absolutely in love with Bermuda and probably always will be," she said. "I come as often as I can. Most of the poetry is just (me) looking back on experiences ? how much I loved Bermuda and what it's like here.

"I still have friends here and some of them are about specific people that live here. They're the ones that really encouraged me to do this. They really appreciated what I had to say about Bermuda.

"It's been really interesting to do. A Bermudian friend of mine that I went to school with at Kindley, Glen Cuoco, is the (local) distributor. He's been very helpful.

"What's amazing is that we live in Memphis and about 300 copies have sold there. Two bookstores have taken the books and we've had a lot of interest from people. It's a beautiful book even if you don't know Bermuda.

"It's not going to be a big commercial venture, but it's been a personal success already, a really wonderful experience for me. I love Bermuda so much. I guess it's just my tribute to the island."

qis available at A.S. Cooper's and online at www.bermudashorts.bm/bermudatales.