By Paul Sylvain 

Meeting children’s author Tona Mareglia, you quickly discover she has a deep and genuine passion for writing and especially about the characters she creates.

Mareglia, who lives and writes from her home in Robbinston, was on hand at the Machias River General Store Nov. 17 to sign copies of her book, Manny and Lizzy: Friends Forever. The book, published late last year, tells the story about a big, burly moose named Manny, who hears a strange sound coming from a “box” stuck in the rocks on a nearby shore.