[Review, Author Interview, Giveaway] What Makes Me...Me by Anne Baldwin and Levi Baldwin

Join Us for This Tour:  May 2 to May 20, 2022

 

Book Details:

Book Title: What Makes Me...Me by Anne Baldwin
Category:  Children's Fictions (ages 3-7), 34 pages
Genre:  Children's Picture Book
Publisher:  Anne Baldwin
Release date:   June 2021
Formats Available for Review: print - softback (USA only), e-book PDF
Tour dates: May 2 to May 20, 2022
Content Rating:  G -Suitable for everyone.  

 

Book Description:

What Makes Me...Me is a story about harnessing your super powered brain. We are all special and unique and our differences are what make us all special. What Makes Me...Me was written especially for those kids with neurological differences, their families, and their friends.

 

BUY THE BOOK:
Amazon~ indiebound
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Review

This book is short and sweet. We follow the narrative of an autistc boy and the book points out ways that make him different from his peers. 

I think it's a good introduction book for children on the topic of autism - both for those on the spectrum and those not. 

I appreciated that the author consulted, and wrote this book with her autistic son, Levi. It shows that she's trying to advocate and support her son, which some parents don't do. 

I will say that there is a line where they describe the autistic character as having a "silly brain," and I think that it's trying to be a cute, well-meaning sentence, but I would have preferred it to say something like "different brain." 

Being autistic isn't a silly, cute quirk and the joking may infantilize autistic people, when they aren't "silly" just different. 

Overall, this was a short, well-illustrated book that many will get a lot of comfort out of. 

Author Interview

What was the inspiration for your book?
  The inspiration behind my book was my son Levi. He was diagnosed with a host of neurological disorders, including Tourette Syndrome, when he was 5. I quickly realized that there was very little information out there for kids who have been diagnosed, or their friends. It was important for me to have representation in classrooms for these kids. To be honest I never saw myself as a writer. This book began as a passion project but became a great way to introduce these concepts to children in an easy-to-understand way.

Outside of your book, what else do you do to advocate for children with Tourette Syndrome?
  I am very involved with the Tourette Association of America as well as advocacy on social media through our Instagram account @connec.tions. It is very important to us as a family that we help change the stigma that surrounds Tourette Syndrome. I also recently got involved with competing in Mrs. pageantry. Having a platform where I can reach thousands of women at once can truly help make an impact. In fact, through pageantry I have been able to donate over 350 copies of my book nationwide.

What is your favorite book you read as a child?
    This is an easy one! Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott. It was the first chapter book I ever read and still one of my all-time favorites. I am one of 4 daughters and I just resonated with the bond these sisters had as well as their distinct personalities. I read most of my books now on my Kindle, but you will always find a copy of Little Women on my bookshelf. In fact, my father-in- law recently gifted me with his copy from the late 1800s.

What books are your favorite to read to your children?
  Sandra Boynton Bell and Mo Willems. My younger son Gus, who just turned 7, still loves for me to read to him and those are still always a hit.  We especially love the Pigeon books. My older son Levi is 10 so he reads a lot on his own now. His favorites are Captain Underpants and the Last Kids on Earth series. He’s a big reader like me.

5What do you want kids or adults to get out of your book?
    There are two main things that I want kids and adults to get out of reading What Makes Me…Me. The first is representation. I want kids like my son to finally see themselves in literature — to be seen in a classroom and know that they aren’t the only one who has neurological differences. The second is Compassion. It is easy to understand something someone is going through, but it’s an entirely different thing to give compassion towards it. I want kids and adults to read this and have more compassion towards the people they may know who may be different than them. 

Where can readers find out more about your book?
  You can check out my website at www.whatmakesmebook.com, on Instagram at @connec.tions or you can find the book on Amazon. 

 

Meet the Author:

Anne Baldwin is a wife, mom, and fierce advocate for neurodiverse kids. Anne wrote her first book What Makes Me...Me after her son Levi was diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome. Passionate about stopping the stigma around Tourette-Syndrome, Anne hopes that her books about embracing your differences as what makes you unique will help kids with Tourette Syndrome, ADHD, and other neurological disorders to feel included and accepted by everyone. Anne lives in metro-Detroit with her husband Nick, their sons Levi and Gus, 3 cats, a dog, and a leopard gecko. 

connect with the author:  website ~ instagram

 

Tour Schedule:
 

May 2 – Working Mommy Journal – book spotlight / giveaway
May 2 - Cover Lover Book Review – book review / giveaway
May 2 - Rockin' Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 3 – Gina Rae Mitchell – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 3 - Baroness' Book Trove – book spotlight / giveaway
May 4 – Sandra's Book Club – book review / giveaway
May 5 – fundinmental – book spotlight / giveaway
May 6 – Splashes of Joy – book review / giveaway
May 9 – Triquetra Reviews – book review / author interview / giveaway
May 10 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review / giveaway
May 11 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 11 - @twilight_reader – book review
May 12 – Reading is My Passion – book review
May 12 - Bound 4 Escape – book review / giveaway
May 13 – Lisa's Reading – book review / giveaway
May 16 – Kam's Place – book review
May 17 – A Mama's Corner of the World – book review / giveaway
May 17 - Library Lady's Kid Lit – book review / giveaway
May 18 – Pause for Tales – book review / giveaway
May 18 - Literary Flits – book spotlight / giveaway
May 19 – Westveil Publishing – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 19 - The Phantom Paragrapher – book review
May 20 – Books for Books – book review
May 20 - Ravenz Reviewz – book review / giveaway

 

Enter the Giveaway:

 

 

WHAT MAKES ME...ME Book Tour Giveaway