Story of beloved Eaton family pet Paloma immortalised in picture book for children

The inspiring story of a bird that became a beloved pet to a South West family has been immortalised in a picture book. Barbara Booth was living in Eaton when she came across Paloma, a dove which took a liking to her home — so much so that she moved in. When Booth made the shift to an inner city lifestyle in a high-rise apartment in Melbourne, Paloma came too. “I was standing at my front door in Eaton and she just flew down quite low,” she said. “She just decided to stay, so I enclosed my whole back patio for her. “We left from there and moved to Mt Lawley and then finally we drove across the Nullarbor to Melbourne and lived in a high-rise apartment.” The book, My Name is Paloma, follows the bird on her adventures around the apartment and adapting to her new lifestyle. “She was the most wonderful adaptable bird,” Booth said. “We had to put her in a fruit basket and cover her with a towel in motels for the drive across the Nullarbor. “She mostly lived inside the unit and had various swings and a bit of a flight path through the apartment. “That’s the story; she invites the children to fly with her through the apartment as she does various activities. “She was just like a little child.” The book is now in book stores across Perth and the South West, including in Busselton and Dunsborough. “I have been hugely surprised at the immediate acceptance it received by the major booksellers in Perth,” Booth said.