Catasauqua High School Class of 2005 alumnus Joe Borda has self-published a children’s book after gaining insight from a guest on the Side Hustle Show - a business podcast for part-time entrepreneurs looking for ideas.

“Jack the Unicorn” is a short story that gets to know a young boy unicorn who likes many things, such as baking with dad and fixing with mom. The book was written by Borda, an information technologist by trade who enjoys creating short stories for his son, Benjamin, during his spare time.

“Jack the Unicorn” was produced through the Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing platform, which launched in 2007 as another self-driven service offered by the popular website. Borda continued to utilize the interweb by outsourcing to Fiverr, a platform for freelance artists, to find the project’s illustrator - the Ople, a self-made graphic designer operating out of Indonesia.

The modern approach to the book publishing process matched Borda’s progressive nature, as his story aimed to cater to all children and sidestep gender stereotypes.

The creative quest was inspired by a family vacation to Mystic, Conn., where they stumbled across a local book store that led their son to the “My Little Pony” franchise. The 4-year-old boy became completely enthralled by the brightly colored characters that radiated kindness and sunshine.

Despite the stereotypical feminine nature of the series, Borda explained that he and his wife, Stacey Koch, do not force their son to follow any certain path and allow him to walk toward any activity he is interested in.

After returning to the Lehigh Valley, Borda, who now resides in Whitehall Township, searched for a story about a boy unicorn his son could more closely relate to but had no luck finding any. Borda took this opportunity to create “Jack the Unicorn,” so his son could have a book he could easily find himself in.

The main protagonist has long hair and can be seen dancing in a ballet class on one page and splashing in the mud on the next. Jack has many interests and aims to teach children they can have a variety of likes and dislikes.

Borda will read his book Jan. 8, 2022, during an author visit at Coplay Public Library, 49 S. Fifth St. The event begins 11 a.m.

The book is available now for purchase on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited. It can be found by searching “Jack the Unicorn” on Amazon.com.

For more information on the self-published book, visit joebordabooks.com or check out Borda’s Facebook and Instagram, joebordabooks.