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My Birthday is September 11 (And Other Short Stories) by Nicole Weaver

Review by Chris Singer

About the author:

Nicole Weaver was born in Port-au-Prince Haiti. She came to the United States when she was ten years old. She is fluent in Creole, French, Spanish and English. She is a veteran teacher of French and Spanish. She is the author of a children’s tri-lingual picture book titled “Marie and Her Friend the Sea Turtle.” The story is about a Haitian little girl who resided by the beach in Haiti. Her second trilingual children’s picture book will be published by Guardian Angel Publishing. The book titled, “My sister is my Best Friend ” will be published in 2011.

About the book:

Growing up is filled with new experiences and they partner emotions. Our trials in life teach us compassion and help us to empathize with others. Our difficulties make us who we are, helping each of us to find our place in the world.

In this collection of short stories, simple acts of kindness make a world of difference in the lives of individuals. The theme of compassion weaves through all five stories, inspiring readers to discover this important lesson in life; we were created to help others.

My take on the book:

This is a nice collection of stories which touches on topics from bi-racial adoption and bullying to overcoming the tragedies of 9/11 and natural disasters through giving and paying it forward.

While touching on these topics, this collection for middle and teen readers shares the common theme of being stories about children dealing with real life struggles, and how kindness and empathy can turn someone’s life around for the better.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the stories:

* “My Birthday is September Eleven” – The title story of the collection is about a boy who was born on 9/11/01 and finds it hard to celebrate his birthday because of the tragic events of that day.

* “Zebra Boy” – A bi-racial boy stands up to a bully because of the support from his best friend.

* “The Good Samaritan” – An anonymous donor contributes the money necessary to help a group of fifth-graders pay for a life-saving surgery for a classmate.

* “No More Hunger” – Ronald becomes impoverished after a devastating hurricane destroys his village in Haiti. Unable to survive on his own, he is rescued from certain death by a kind stranger.

* “A New Life” – A bi-racial boy finally escapes a difficult past when he is adopted by a caring couple.

The stories are well-written and can be useful for inspiring an excellent discussion between middle and teen readers and their parents and teachers.

As I read the stories, I kept thinking of Gandhi’s quote: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” I think these stories hold that kind of potential for young readers. They may be inspired to make a positive difference in someone’s life by either contributing financially to a cause, showing empathy for others or even standing up beside someone being treated unjustly.

Nicole Weaver was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. She is fluent in Creole, French, Spanish and English. She is a veteran teacher of French and Spanish at the high school level. Her second trilingual children’s book titled, My Sister is My Best Friend will be published by Guardian Angel Publishing in the fall. She is also the author of a trilingual picture book titled, Marie and Her Friend the Sea Turtle. She recently published a kindle ebook titled, My Birthday is September Eleven and Other Short Stories.

What compelled you to write a collection of children's stories about 9/11?

I have a friend whose nephew was born on 9/11. He will turn ten on 9/11. His birthday always has an undercurrent of sadness to it. After hearing about him, I began to wonder about all the children that were born on that day. The story is designed to give a ray of hope to all those children who were born on that horrible day.

I lived in New York and during the summers I worked as a summer intern at one of the twin towers. It is still very hard for me to accept that 9/11 really happened.

What would you say is the age range for the readers?

The stories are geared for 6-8 graders.

What do you hope your book will teach children?

I hope children will learn that there is always someone worse off than them. The main lesson I want children to learn is the need to have compassion for others.

Do you have other books published?

Yes, I have a trilingual children’s picture titled: Marie and her Friend the Sea Turtle/Maria y su Amiga la Tortuga del Mar. I have a second trilingual book due to be published by Guardian Angel Publishing fall 2011 titled: My Sister is My Best Friend and a third book under contract: My Brother is My best Friend.

What do you love most about writing for children?

I love inspiring children and encouraging them to appreciate other cultures and languages.

I understand your son is on the cover of the story collection. How did that come about?

My cover designer made the suggestion to use my own photo. After perusing my picture selection I came across the photo my oldest took of our youngest son while vacationing in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Do you have a website and blog?

Yes I do. For more information readers can visit:

My Sister Is My Best Friend Blog:
http://mysisterismybestfriend.blogspot.com

Marie and her Friend the Sea Turtle Blog:
http://marieandherfriendtheseaturtle.blogspot.com

Websites:
http://outskirtspress.com/nicoleweaver
http://www.melangeofcultures.wordpress.com
http://nicole-weaver.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Littleton Colorado (Free-Press-Release.com) December 5, 2010
M E D I A R E L E A S E

CONTACT: Nicole Weaver
Children’s Author
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 303 263-6346

For Immediate Release

Marie and her Friend the Sea Turtle coasts through cyberspace

Title: Marie and her friend the Sea Turtle/ María y su amiga la Tortuga del mar/Marie et son amie la Tortue de mer
Written by: Nicole Weaver
Illustrated by: Ruben Chavez
Ages: 8-12
Publisher: Outskirts press

Soft cover: ISBN: 9781432723774

Published: March 2009

Synopsis:
This story is about the love that developed between a little girl named Marie and a stranded sea turtle. The story tells the struggles Marie had as she helped the sea turtle back out to sea.

Esta historia es sobre el amor que se desarrolló entre una niña llamaba María y una tortuga que vino a tierra para poner sus huevos. La historia cuenta las dificultades que tenía María para regresar la tortuga de nuevo al océano.

Cette histoire est au sujet de l'amour qui s'est développé entre une petite fille qui s'appelait Marie et une tortue de mer qui est venue sur le sable pour pondre ses œufs. L'histoire raconte les difficultés que Marie a rencontrées pour remettre la tortue dans l'océan.

Nicole Weaver is a teacher, freelance writer and children's author. Her first picture book, Marie and Her Friend the Sea Turtle, is written in three languages: English, French and Spanish, and was inspired by the author's childhood experience in the beaches in Haiti. Nicole was devastated by the recent Haiti earthquake and is donating part of the proceeds of her book to help victims. In this interview, Nicole talks about her book and what she's been doing to create awareness and raise money for the Lambi Fund of Haiti.

Thanks you for this interview, Nicole. When did you start writing for children?

I started writing for children five years ago. Prior to that I primarily wrote poetry and short stories. It is my heart desire to continue writing tri-lingual children's picture books that portray all children of color in a positive light. I remember asking myself why the children in the books I read were not the same color as me. I feel this is my second calling in life. In six years, I will retire from teaching so I can write fulltime.

Tell us about your children’s book, Marie and her Friend the Sea Turtle. What inspired you to write it?

When I was a little girl, I lived near the beach in Haiti. Sea turtles came to shore to lay their eggs. I took daily walks along the shore to collect seashells, low and behold out of the blue I came across this huge sea turtle. At the age of ten I moved to America where I got hooked on reading picture books. After reading so many books I daydreamed of writing a picture book of my own one day. I attended several workshops for writers, it was there I learned that I should focus my writing on personal experiences. The memory of seeing the sea turtle was still very vivid , it was then I decided to write a book about what I saw on the beach so many years ago.

Your book is written in English, French and Spanish, making it quite educational linguistically. What compelled you to do this?

I was compelled to write the book in English, French and Spanish because I am fluent in all three languages. Since I am a French and Spanish teacher I am passionate about finding ways to expose young children to a foreign language. A child’s mind is wired to master a language very naturally at a young age. A tri-lingual book will help expose a child to two new languages, it is a good way to garner interest for other languages and cultures.

What is the main message children will learn from this book?

I tried to convey the importance of friendship and showing compassion for someone in need of help. It also has themes of love and a family coming together to make a sound decision and respecting nature.

I understand you’re donating part of the proceeds from this book to the Lambi Fund of Haiti as a way to help earthquake victims. Please tell us about this.

My mother lost thirteen cousins in the earthquake . Shortly after the earthquake the superintendent of the school district where I have been teaching for twenty years sought my help. I volunteered to do a