Inside Me Lives A Village – Must Read
3 mins read

Inside Me Lives A Village – Must Read

Inside Me Lives A Village is a new book by Nadine Levitt that empowers children to identify, acknowledge and direct the many feelings that live inside them. Feelings are a part of life, whether you feel happy, angry, sad, or shy, but they can feel even bigger and overwhelming to children. With beautiful illustrations by Miriam Mitzi Rosas each feeling is brought to life as a character that can be welcomed and, when desired, asked to leave. This is a must-have book for children, parents, and teachers to talk to kids about the proper way to think, deal and express their many feelings.

5 Questions We Asked The Author:
  • Why did you write this book?
    I wrote this book for my two kids, who were trying to process the many big feelings that they were feeling at the time. I tried a few different things, talking to other parents, and reading books and articles about the best way to explain it to kids. Then one day, after I had put them to bed, I poured myself a glass of wine and a light bulb went off! I put pen to paper, and the story just flowed very quickly!
  • Did you face any challenges?
    Yes, I actually wrote the story  about two years ago but had trouble matching the illustrations with it. I went through two different illustrators, each of whom are great, but it just didn’t fit the vision I had. I ended up shelving the idea, until my colleague and friend at Wurrly, asked me about it. She has as daughter also, and understood the true message of the book. She also knows the aesthetic I like, since we have worked together for so long, and from the initial sketch I knew that it would work wonderfully! She truly captured the vision I had for it perfectly! The rest is history!
  • What are the key takeaways from the book?
    It teaches kids a 3 step process for a healthy approach to emotions:
    (1) IDENTIFY emotions
    (2) ACKNOWLEDGE them when they come up
    (3) Learn tools to DIRECT your emotions
  • What character is your favorite and why?
    My favorite character is actually one that didn’t make it into the core 7, or the front cover, but it is included on the page with the whole village – the brave Lion! Lions have always been very special to me… I feel like I have a Lion inside that keeps me strong, loyal, and brave when I need to be!
  • What would you tell other moms who have ideas for books?
    I would say a few things:
    (1) Feel the fear and do it anyway! Just get it written and figure it out as you go along!
    (2) Get feedback from your kids and all your friends! Invite them over to workshop it – it’s surprising how supportive everyone has been and how much everyone seemed to like being a part of the process!
    (3) Check out the self publishing resources online to figure out how best to market your book. You may not be able to get your book into book stores but there are plenty of ways to get your books out there!

Such a great book – buy it now!