Tuesday, October 21, 2014

'Mary-Ellen O'Keefe's Word-Speaking Diet' by Tom Neely


Blurb:

"Mary-Ellen O'Keefe's Word-Speaking Diet" is the story of a normally talkative little girls struggle to overcome her shyness at school. At home she is chatty, but at school, she goes on an unusual "Word-Speaking Diet"! 



This 36-page Rhyming Picture book will delight parents and children alike!

Take a peek inside:


Buy links

The story is based on my own daughter's preschool experience. I wrote the story when she was 5 and it helped her come out of her shell, let the world hear her voice, and finally end her "Word-Speaking Diet"!

Thursday, October 9, 2014

'My God Is Awesome!' by Kyla and Monique McKenzie


Blurb:

Kyla McKenzie, age 5, is the coauthor along with her mother, Monique McKenzie, of the newly released children's picture book, My God is Awesome! The great work illustrates the wondrous creations of God through the eyes of five-year-old Kyla. Through breathtaking watercolor hand-paintings by world-renowned illustrator Dr. Jan Spivey Gilchrist and emotive text authored by the mother-daughter team, children and adults are reminded that God’s awesomeness should be appreciated and respected in life’s most simple pleasures.

This work is important because:
  • The book was showcased at the American Library Association Conference in Las Vegas, NV this past June.
  • Kyla is one of the youngest published authors on record.
  • The book is inspirational for children and adults.
  • We were intentional in selecting children of all nationalities and backgrounds as models.
  • The artwork by Hall-of-Famer Jan Spivey Gilchrist is awesome!
http://amzn.to/1w0Ku59




About Kyla McKenzie - Author

Kyla McKenzie, a five-year-old first time author, is on a mission to spread the word about the awesomeness of God. Toward this end, the pre-kindergartener convinced her mom that authoring a children’s picture book would be the best way to reach this goal. Despite her youth, Kyla was actively involved in every aspect of the creation and production of this wonderful work. Expect more books from this spirited writer.

About Monique McKenzie - Author

Monique McKenzie is an award-winning journalist, who has written and contributed to numerous nonfiction works, including a long list of articles for Black Enterprise, Essence, Heart & Soul, School Library Journal, The Network Journal, Uptown Professional and a host of other publications. Though most known for her health book, It’s a Sistah Thing: A Guide to Understanding and Dealing with Fibroids for Black Women, being a supportive mom to her three beautiful children is her greatest joy. Kyla’s brothers Tyler (age 10) and Myles (age 8) are their little sister’s biggest supporters. Thus, My God is Awesome! is Monique’s most rewarding project yet!

Visit their website:


Tuesday, October 7, 2014

'Trotters of Tweeville: Zavis DaMavis' by Shirin Zarqa-Lederman


Blurb:

Zavis DaMavis is a happy young boy and a proud resident of a whimsical town called Tweeville. He’s off to school one morning when his mom—a very wise woman—gives him an important reminder. But what does it mean to treat others the way you’d like to be treated?

While Zavis ponders his mother’s advice as he walks to school, he’s distracted by an elderly man who needs a hand getting across the street. When he’s done helping, he finds that he’s forgotten what she said. Zavis must remember his mother’s words if he’s ever going to understand what they mean. But how can he think when he’s so busy being kind to his friends?


 Buy links

Author Bio:

Shirin Zarqa-Lederman is a wife and mother of five children. Shirin lives in New Jersey with her family, where she was born and raised. She is a Board Certified Professional Counselor and is licensed in NJ. Her 17-year counseling career has focused solely on children and adolescents and their families.

Most recently Shirin’s practice has transformed into “mobile” therapy, where she counsels in a clients’ home rather than the traditional counselor office. This allows her to experience a child in his/her element-a much more natural setting. Her attention has been children and adolescents who have difficulty socializing with their peers, developing and maintaining focus on daily tasks, managing behavior within a school setting, as well as a familial setting.

She utilizes experiential therapies, which is a process whereby-as she puts it- “if you can experience it you can feel it, and if you can feel it you can choose whether or not to recreate it.” When asked about her inspiration for this book, she stated, “This book series is my attempt to ‘recreate’ the practice of that infamous ‘golden rule.’"