Happy Book Birthday: HOW TO EAT A MANGO Plus Giveaway

Posted on July 16, 2024 by viviankirkfield

Are you ready to blow out the candles and enjoy a yummy piece of cake? I hope so, because we are celebrating a book birthday today of HOW TO EAT A MANGO, written by Paola Santos and illustrated by Juliana Perdomo and published by Neal Porter Books! And guess what? Author Paola stopped by to chat with us…and she’s offering a giveaway of a copy of this gorgeous new book (USA addresses only) – so please make sure you leave a comment and SHARE the post on your social media for extra tickets in the giveaway hat.

What a gorgeous cover!!! Engaging and inviting…kids will definitely want to grab this one from the library shelves!

Here’s a little bit about the book from the Amazon sales page:
Abuelita teaches Carmencita that you can’t rush mango-eating: it takes five steps to appreciate the gift and feel the love.

Carmencita doesn’t want to help Abuelita pick mangoes; she doesn’t even like them! They’re messy, they get stuck in her teeth, and it’s a chore to throw out the rotten ones.

But Abuelita adores mangoes, and patiently, she teaches Carmencita the right way to eat them. Together, they listen to the tree’s leaves, feel its branches and roots above and below, and smell and feel the sweet, smooth fruits. Each step is a meditation on everything Mamá Earth has given, and in the Earth’s love, Carmencita feels the love of her Mami, her Papi, her little brother Carlitos, and of course, Abuelita.

When they finally bite in, the juice running down their arms, Carmencita understands. The mangoes are more than just mangoes… and she’s ready for another!

Inspired by her own childhood in Venezuela, Paola Santos’s mango-sweet story is a grounding, life-affirming take on gratitude for nature’s gifts and connection with family and culture. Juliana Perdomo’s cheery artwork brings Carmencita, Abuelita, and their mango tree to life with all the warmth of golden fruit under the sun.

Simultaneously released in Spanish as Cómo se come un mango.

And now we get to welcome Paola to Picture Books Help Kids Soar!

ME: Hello, Paola. Thanks so much for stopping by! We always want to know what inspired an author to write a particular story. Can you tell us about why you wrote HOW TO EAT A MANGO?

PAOLA: Thank you for helping me celebrate the book launch, Vivian. The inspiration for “How to Eat a Mango” came from my abuelita and my deep connection to my Venezuelan roots. I remember her in the backyard, fully immersed in eating a mango, her delight like a poem in motion. Despite initially disliking mangoes, I loved watching her savor every bite. In Venezuela, the matriarchal presence is crucial, and my abuelita, though not as sweet as the grandmother in my book, was a strong, bustling figure in our home. The ripe mangoes often meant work for me, but they also brought moments of community as neighbors took bags of them. Today, mangoes evoke nostalgia for my family and homeland, knowing I may never relive those cherished moments or see my country as it once was.

Thank you so much, Paola! This is a book that will help many children feel seen.

Here’s a little bit about Paola:
Paola Santos is a children’s book author born and raised in Venezuela. After moving to Canada, she found the courage to share the words and stories that had long been enclosed in her imagination. Her stories are now woven with her culture, experience in a new country, hope, happiness, and diversity. Paola holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Literature and Children’s Literature and Reading Promotion. She is the author of How to Eat a Mango / Cómo see come un mango (Neal Porter Books / Holiday House), 2024, and the forthcoming picture book A House in My Barrio (Henry Holt / Macmillan), 2026. She lives in Edmonton.

And here are ways to connect with her and find out more about her books:
Website: www.paolasantos.com
Twitter and Instagram: @pgsantosb
Twitter: https://x.com/pgsantosb
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pgsantosb/

And here’s a super cool graphic with info about upcoming book launch events:

Please make sure you leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of HOW TO EAT A MANGO. And please share the post widely to help folks find out about this wonderful new book!

What else can you do to help new books success?
Buy the book
Review the book
Place the book on your Goodreads Want to Read Shelf

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

Happy Book Birthday: OLD TO JOY Plus DOUBLE Giveaway

Posted on September 5, 2023 by viviankirkfield

One of my favorite blog posts to create is a Happy Book Birthday post – and so, you know I am dancing with joy today! ESPECIALLY because I know the author, long-time educator and talented creative Anita Crawford Clark! And especially because the name of her book is: OLD TO JOY – that’s a perfect title for someone like me!

OLD TO JOY is written and illustrated by Anita and published by Gnome Road Books. I’m really impressed with the quality and beauty and thoughtful content of the books that are coming out from this new publishing house. They care about making books that touch on sensitive topics – and their books are very relatable to young kids!

Here’s a little bit about the book from the Amazon sales page:

Joy’s Grandmama lives in an old house, on an old street, with old trees and all kinds of old things. And Joy already knows . . . there’s no fun in that!

When young Joy goes to spend the day with Grandmama, she struggles to find beauty in all the old things at Grandmama’s house. None of it looks or smells quite the same as it does at home. But as the day passes, Grandmama patiently helps Joy discover how the old ways can bring joy to any heart. Whether it’s the swaying of stately trees, bubbles dancing in a sink filled with dishes, the sweet scents of a lovingly tended garden, or the memories found in a room packed with hats – if Joy open’s her heart and mind, there is beauty to be found everywhere at Grandmama’s house.

Gorgeous, richly detailed illustrations capture the movement of Joy’s feelings of boredom and doubt to awe and appreciation for her Grandmama’s attitude and way of life. Debut author-illustrator Anita Crawford Clark celebrates her African American lived experience and family heritage in this intergenerational story that is certain to encourage a healthy-aging mindset among readers of all ages and add a spark of joy to any home, classroom, or library setting. A perfect gift for grandparents and grandchildren alike!

And happily, Anita stopped by and shared a bit about the path to publication for this book.

ANITA: I first penned the opening lines for this book in 1998. “Grandmama lived in an old house, on an old street, with old trees, and all kinds of old things.” I was inspired to write these lines based on my experiences as a child at my grandmother’s house where everything seemed old, even the people. Much like Joy, I came to appreciate old things and older people like my grandmother. I appreciated them for their wisdom, courage, experiences, faith, love and so much more. After many rejections of this story in 1998-99, I did not pick it up again until 2020. After multiple rounds of revisions, it was ultimately acquired by Sandra Sutter of Gnome Road Publishing in 2021.

Here’s a little bit about Anita and links for you to learn more about her:
Anita Crawford Clark is a writer and illustrator of fiction and nonfiction books for children. Anita grew up chasing butterflies and fishing crawdads from a nearby creek during scorching Sacramento summers. Her stories and illustrations often reflect those memorable childhood years. Anita is an inaugural recipient of the SCBWI OMA (Out from the Margins) Award for her debut picture book, OLD TO JOY. A veteran K-12 teacher, Anita especially enjoys directing musical theatre productions. The athlete in Anita enjoys shooting hoops. The musician in her enjoys playing the drums, piano, and banjo. Anita draws inspiration from her faith, nature, music, history, and everyday life.
You can connect with Anita on Twitter (@AnitaLClark)
Instagram (@AnitasFavPics)
Or visit her website at AnitaCrawfordClark.com.

We all know how important it is to support our favorite books and their authors and illustrators. We can:
Buy their books – here is the link for a signed copy
Review their books
Add their books to our Goodreads WANT TO READ shelf
Tell friends about their books (via social media is great!)
Ask our local library to purchase copies for their collection.

And because of Anita’s generosity, we have a DOUBLE GIVEAWAY! One winner will receive a copy of the book + book swag. The other winner will receive an Ask-Me-Anything Zoom chat or a Picture Book Manuscript critique! Please make sure when you leave your comment that you tell us WHICH PRIZE you would like if you are one of the lucky winners.

I hope you all have a beautiful week.

Cover Reveal: YUMBO GUMBO Plus Giveaway

Posted on July 16, 2023 by viviankirkfield

What a blast! One of my dear kidlit friends, the incredible Keila Dawson, just stirred up a new book, YUMBO GUMBO, illustrated by the talented Katie Crumpton, that launches from Charlesbridge on February 20, 2024. And I am so honored to participate in the celebration with the COVER REVEAL.

TA-DA!!!