ROXY ROGERS:
YOUR DESTINY IS CALLING
by Emily Siskin-Toy
Illustrated by Brian C. Krümm
Three Bug Books
32 pages
ages 6 - 9
What happens when a young girl with a Hall of Fame baseball pedigree breaks the family mold and follows her dream to become a soul singer? “Roxy Rogers: Your Destiny Is Calling”, a picture book for ages 6 – 9, lets children see that their families will love them just the same when they pursue their true passions in life.
Everybody in Roxy’s family–from her great-grandpa (played with Lou Gehrig), to her grandpa (played with Jackie Robinson), to her mother (super-star college softball player), to her father (was a Los Angeles Dodger), to her sister (won a Gold Medal for Team USA Softball, and so on)–famously played ball, and Roxy is next in line. The only problem is that Roxy dreams of singing soul music like her idol, Aretha Franklin!
A historical addendum provides information about the Hall of Fame baseball players who turn up in the book, as well as Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul music. Additionally, a fun treasure hunt for clues about Roxy’s true destiny runs throughout the book, giving readers an enhanced, interactive experience.
MY TIDBITS
Roxy is doomed to be a baseball/softball player. After all, every single family member she can think of was a famous player themselves at one time or another. They say that playing ball is in her blood. But that's not what she wants. Just like many kids, Roxy doesn't want to disappoint her family, so she keeps her real dreams to herself - a fact I found very true to life. After all, what kid is willing to disappoint their entire family?
The illustrations are well done, and the story telling itself is direct to the point (if not perhaps a bit too brief). It's perfect for a short read-a-loud. I especially enjoyed the mention of famous baseball players, and the added tidbits at the end of the book about them, which is sure to interest small baseball player gurus. As an extra bonus, small surprises are hidden in the pictures, which kids are asked to go back and discover when the story comes to an end. This alone guarantees to grab kids' interest.
Summed up, this is a sweet story kids can relate to with a heart-warming ending. Kids will enjoy it.
You can find this on Amazon here!
And here she is. . .
EMILY SISKIN-TOY!!!
A U.C. Santa Cruz banana slug alum,
Emily Siskin-Toy launched her writing career with posts at various film and television magazines in Los Angeles. After a break in the action to raise her daughter, Emily and her college sweetheart founded WOW! Music Studios, a successful children’s music instruction school in Mill Valley, California.
But just like the character in her book, Emily’s true passion was something entirely different; she always dreamed of writing children’s books. Inspiration was everywhere for
Roxy Rogers: Your Destiny Is Calling. While coaching her daughter’s youth softball and basketball teams, Emily eventually came to realize that the world of sports was a passion of hers, not her daughter’s, who really wanted, of course, to be a singer. The plot of the story was right in front of her, and the surrounding details would be cultivated from her lifetime of love for the rich history of Major League Baseball and her daughter’s love of music.
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I was pretty excited to see this pretty cool new product available through Amazon. This is a HOT PRODUCT! The all-new Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition Tablet also comes with 1 year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited (which means kids get unlimited access to 5,000 books, movies, TV shows, educational apps, and games—at no additional cost!). It includes a quad-core processor for great performance, a vivid HD display, front and rear-facing cameras, and Dolby Audio PLUS comes with a Kid-Proof Case, and a 2-year worry-free guarantee - if they break it, return it and Amazon replaces it for free. No questions asked! Um... can you say Christmas present?
