Happy Book Birthday: DESERT QUEEN Plus Zoom Chat Giveaway

Posted on October 24, 2023 by viviankirkfield

It’s time to sing Happy Book Birthday to a beautiful new nonfiction picture book biography!!!!

Oh my goodness! What a glorious cover! Illustrator Svabhu Kohli is a genius! And what a wonderful story by Jyoti Rajan Gopal.

Here’s a little bit about DESERT QUEEN from the Amazon sales page:
This picture book biography in verse follows the life of beloved Rajasthani drag performer Queen Harish, known as the Whirling Desert Queen of Rajasthan. Lit by an inner fire and propelled by a family tragedy, Harish defied the gender conventions of middle class Indian life, battled discrimination and intimidation, and eventually grew up to dance with Bollywood movie stars and on stages across the world.

Jyoti Gopal’s rhythmic phrases evoke the particular sounds and beats of the music Harish danced to, and capture the passions and conflicts of his life. The poignant and inspiring tale is interpreted by internationally acclaimed Rajasthani artist Svabhu Kohli in kohl-black lines and shapes and brilliant jewel-like colors.

And here’s a little bit about the inspiration for the book from author Jyoti Gopal:

JYOTI: When we visited Rajasthan, India in Dec 2018 and sat down for the Queen Harish show, little did I know that for the next two hours, I was going to be beguiled and captivated by a master performer. As a child, Harish Kumar loved watching the folk artist troupes in his town of Jaisalmer perform. He was especially fascinated by the female dancers with their bright swirling skirts and their sparkly, jangly jewelry. But he never dared to dream that one day, he would be one of those performers, dancing to cheering, clapping crowds. His path to the stage was not an easy one as he bucked the traditional conventions of his community. But through the ups and downs, he kept his smile, his grace and his humor, and became a fierce advocate for Rajasthani folk music, dance, and gender fluidity. I am honored to have been able to bring Queen Harish’s story to life.

And here’s a little bit about the author:
Growing up, Jyoti lived in Thailand, Indonesia, Myanmar, China and India. She finally settled in New York where she raised two daughters with her husband (who also grew up all over the world). As a child, she adored and devoured books but did not enjoy writing. At all.

As a grown up, she is a forever kindergarten teacher and mom. She still adores and devours books. But now, she likes to write!

Her two picture books AMERICAN DESI illus. by Supriya Kelkar (Little Brown) and MY PAATI’S SARIS(Kokila), illus. by art twink, were released in 2022, and this year a picture book biography DESERT QUEEN illus. by Svabhu Kohli (Levine Querido) releases on Oct 24. She has three more releasing in 2024: ONE SWEET SONG illus. by Sonia Sánchez (Jan.16, Candlewick), SISTER DAY illus. by Fanny Liem (July, FSG) and LOVE IS HERE WITH YOU: A LULLABY OF BLESSINGS illus. by Nabi Ali (Fall, Candlewick).
My Link Tree
For a SIGNED COPY: Order DESERT QUEEN at Books of Wonder for a signed copy

Kirkus review of DESERT QUEEN

To connect with Jyoti and find out more about her books:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

Please be sure to leave a comment and share this post on your social media for a chance to win a wonderful 30-minute Ask-Me-Anything Zoom chat with Jyoti. And please do at least one more thing as we all need to help books become successful…otherwise, publishers will stop making them.
Buy the book…links are in the post
Review the book (Amazon reviews are especially important)
Place the book on your Goodreads WANT TO READ shelf
Ask your local library to purchase copies for their collection

Thank you for spending your precious moments with us. I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Happy Book Birthday: ILLUSIONS IN ART Plus Giveaway

Posted on October 10, 2023 by viviankirkfield

Do you know why I love Tuesdays? I love Tuesdays because that’s the day that many publishers launch books! And today we have a DOUBLE BOOK LAUNCH for talented author/illustrator Chiêu Anh Urban! Now, we know that birthdays usually involve cake (here is your virtual slice) and candles (one, two, three, blow!) and presents…and the lovely creator of these beautiful books is giving one lucky winner a copy of one of her books!

Here is a little bit about this creative board book series:
The Food Book: These illusions will play tricks on your eyes! Find two foods on each page in a clever, stylish exploration of negative and positive space for the very young.

A twisty pretzel loops around and back.
What fruit is hidden inside this snack?

Look closely. What do you see? Could that be two orange slices tucked inside the curves of the pretzel? And what fruit is nestling inside a pitcher’s handle? Or in the twist of a cupcake’s frosting? Colorful spreads invite children in with a rhyme that contains a clue, while the bold, graphic design steers the eye to a negative space revealing a hidden familiar food. Black-and-white spreads at the end depict the same foods again, further clarifying the concept of positive and negative space. Fun and enticing for even the youngest children and a delight for art-oriented parents, this interactive seek-and-find book begs for many repeat sharings.

The Animal Book: These illusions will play tricks on your eyes! ! Find two animals on each page in a clever, stylish exploration of negative and positive space for the very young.

Singing, tweeting, small and round.
Lion likes this whistler’s sound.

Look closely. What do you see? Could that be a bird nestled in the curl of Lion’s tail? And who is swimming by Whale? Or basking in the sun near Swan? Colorful spreads invite children in with a rhyme that contains a clue, while the bold, graphic design steers the eye to a negative space revealing a hidden familiar animal. Black-and-white spreads at the end depict the same animals again, further clarifying the concept of positive and negative space. Fun and enticing for even the youngest children and a delight for art-oriented parents, this interactive seek-and-find book begs for many repeat sharings.

And Chiêu Anh kindly stopped by to chat with us about how these books came about.
Chiêu Anh: The graphic designer in me was thrilled to have the opportunity to create Illusions in Art, a two-book series with Candlewick Press. Since art school way back when, I’ve always been obsessed with negative and positive space design, and love the challenge of creating art where a deceptively simple image can be formed in the negative space.

My fascination for this concept inspired me to create Illusions in Art: Animals and Illusions in Art: Food. With stylistic illustrations and rhyming clues, little ones are encouraged to switch their perspective and discover two images in one. My thought process was to create fun seek-and-find books that introduce children to the negative and positive space concept, all while discovering clever illusions.

Dedicated to developing interactive children’s books for the youngest readers, I strive to create empowering, playful and unique story time experiences through exploration. I am a children’s book author/illustrator, award-winning graphic designer, and format designer. My recent titles include novelty books 123 ZOOM and ABC ROAR (Little Simon, S&S 2022) and the Color Wonder series: Color Wonder Hooray for Spring! and Color Wonder Winter is Here!
To connect with her:
Website
Facebook
Blog
Instagram
X/Twitter

These are so cleverly done…and so perfect for our littlest lovers of books! And even though they are strong and sturdy books, they still need our help to become successful. Please choose at least one of these to do:
Buy the books:
Illusions in Art: Animals
Illusions in Art: Food
Review the books
Put the books on your Goodreads WANT TO READ shelf
Tell friends about the books (share on Social Media)
Ask your library to purchase copies for their collection

And of course, please don’t forget to leave a comment to be entered n the giveaway!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Happy Book Birthday: WORDS BETWEEN US Plus Giveaway

Posted on October 3, 2023 by viviankirkfield

I am probably one of the luckiest people in the world – I get to share beautiful brand new books all the time! It’s like a party 365 days a year – and I’m so glad you stopped by to have some cake and sing a Happy Book Birthday welcome to WORDS BETWEEN US, written by Angela Pham Krans and illustrated by Dung Ho and published by HarperCollins TODAY!