God Hugs My House at Night by Gina Collins Weaver, illustrated by Bren Riddle

Night time can be a particularly scary time for children. They experience the bumps in the night, the imagined monsters under the bed and a sense of powerlessness. Often, these factors make fear inevitable and sleep elusive.

Children need their fears acknowledged and validated. They should know God is there no matter what they fear or where they lay their heads at night. In a modest home, a hospital room, a makeshift shelter or an opulent mansion, God is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent (an almighty God who is present in all places, seeing all things).

Knowing God is there brings comfort to a child and imagining God hugging their dwelling can stimulate their imagination and foster a sense of security.

Children understand hugs and God Hugs My House at Night assures them they are not alone. Children can feel empowered and brave; not because fear is not real, but because God is also real. He remains no matter where you dwell or lay your head, how dark the circumstances or how dark the night.

"Be strong and have strength of heart. Do not be afraid or shake with fear because of them. For the Lord your God is the One Who goes with you. He will be faithful to you. He will not leave you alone.” Deuteronomy 31:6

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About Gina Collins Weaver

I was born in Dover, Delaware, but I have lived most of my life in the south (Alabama). My mom was an elementary school teacher and my father was an Air Force serviceman. As an Air Force brat, I moved around often. We changed cities, states and countries, but I was too young to remember most of it. However, one of my earliest memories is of books in our home. They were everywhere.

And so the love affair began. I love books; especially children's books. I have maintained that love, as a mother, who has bought hundreds of books for my two daughters to enjoy. When they were in elementary and middle school, I always looked forward to volunteering at their school's yearly book fair. It was a wonderful way to spend extra time with my girls, but also allowed me the opportunity to peruse the book stands for the newest books as well as the tried and true classics. I would pick out books for my girls and looked forward to their book choices. I would buy too many books, along with bookmarks, etc, but it was worth it. Today both my daughters love to read!

Reading is a wonderful experience and books are an amazing vehicle for a child's imagination. Reading helps children create the pictures that affect their world. Characters can become friends, ideas can become beliefs and concepts can become comfort.

I imagined being an author one day and now I am.

I am also a wife and mother of two. I majored in Sociology and minored in Psychology in college. I have worked for a Nonprofit Youth Development Organization for over 25 years. I write whenever there is a pen and paper available and although God Hugs My House at Night is my first published book, I have numerous books inside me screaming to get out!

I hope God Hugs My House at Night will bless you!

~Gina

I was compensated via Fiverr for sharing this post. I only share those books that I feel would be of interest to my readers.

'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!

Available in ebook and paperback!

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:

www.kylamckenzie.com

Review of The House on Dirty-Third Street

The House on Dirty-Third Street by Jo S. Kittinger, illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez, is the story of a young girl and her mom who move to a rundown house on Thirty-Third Street. The entire neighborhood appears somewhat rundown, but theirs is the worst. Her mom tells her to just look at it through the eyes of faith. The two start to dig away at preparing their new house to fit their dreams and quickly feel defeated. When they go to the new church, the girl asks her Sunday School teacher to pray for them, so that they could see their home with the eyes of faith. Almost immediately, people from the church and the neighborhood start to show up to offer their assistance. Working together, the house that they had seen through their eyes of faith becomes a reality.


I love this book. I also live in an older neighborhood where houses seem to constantly need some kind of attention. Like the neighborhood in the book, we are a community that does whatever we can to help each other. You know that if you need help with anything, you can reach out to the neighbors and get what you need. We're all here to live our lives in a beautiful neighborhood. It reflects on us as people and we take pride in where we live.

Sometimes it isn't easy to see the beauty in your home and life. The old saying goes, "When life hands you lemons, you need to make lemonade." Make the best of what you are given and it will become better than you had imagined. I like the line in this book about looking at the home through the eyes of faith. If you have faith in something, you can make it happen. It isn't always going to come without some hard work, but it will come.

This book also serves as a reminder to help your neighbors and to follow the Golden Rule. Take the first step and say something kind to the people you see. It can be infectious and lead to great things. It's also good for your karma.

I would use this book with elementary-aged students, to remind them about being helpful and optimistic. It could be used in schools, as well, as a foundation for discussions as to how people find their eyes of faith, no matter what their religion.


I received a set of galleys from the publisher in exchange for my honest review of this book.