"I Love My Purse" - a bookwrap

Hi, my name's Charlie.  I love my red purse.  I carry my purse because .... I want to!  

Unwrapping

"I Love My Purse"

Authored by Belle DeMont

Art by Sonja Wimmer

Ages: 4-7

Grade K-2

Unwrapping some fabulous illustrations for you

Reviews:

“Delightfully inspiring.”

—Foreword Review, *starred review, 09/17

“With his polite determination not to conform to other people’s gender expectations, Charlie is the heart of this delightful story.”

—Quill & Quire, *starred review, 09/17

About the book

Charlie loves his bright red purse that his grandmother gave to him.   One day he decides to wear it to school.  Everyone around him questions his choice of a purse because after all boys don't have purses they wear baseball caps and sneakers, carry worms in their pockets and toads in their backpacks, ride skateboards and read comic books.   Charlie's answer is, " I love my purse." I'm carrying a purse, "Cause I want to." That answer is good enough for him because you see Charlie is a boy who is comfortable in his own skin, he likes himself, he is confident, knows what he wants and goes for it.  His has great self-esteem and it shows. 

His attitude and sense of self-worth inspires others around him to do the same.  They learn from Charlie that it is important to be who you are  - to be true to yourself.  His dad dons his favourite  Hawaiian shirt and off he goes to work, his friend Charlotte decides to paint her face like a tiger as she's very into face-painting, an older boy exhibits his culinary skills, and the crossing guard now twinkles in a pair of sparkly shoes that he adores and is happy to showcase to others.  

This fun book highlights gender roles, family and friends, self-esteem, and acceptance.  I love the fact that nobody in the story harshly judged Charlie or bullied him, but were inspired by him and in so doing were free to express the things that they loved to do. 

The illustrations are action-packed, detailed and very entertaining.  I highly recommend this debut book by the author.  

Storywraps Rating - 5 HUGS!!!!!

About the author

Belle DeMont grew up in a creative household in the salt-licked city of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her love of the make-believe started with imaginary friends and quickly moved on to made-up stories. As with many people, math, science and grammar were not Belle’s strong suits, so from an early age she began looking for imaginative ways to complete her school assignments.

Belle attended the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design where she received her BFA with a specialization in drawing. When asked to do a final paper for a writing class, Belle asked if she could instead write and illustrate a children’s story. The teacher happily agreed and this story eventually became her first children’s book, I Love My Purse (Fall 2017), published by Annick Press.

She then went on to complete a certificate in digital illustration at Montreal’s Concordia University. Her inspiration comes from sources ranging as widely as the joys of childhood, the history of her native province—and everything in between.

Belle happily spends most of her time making up stories and capturing them in drawings and words.

About the illustrator

Sonja Wimmer is an illustrator and storyteller from Germany. After studying and working for several years as a graphic designer in her hometown of Munich and in Brussels, she decided to pack her bags and move to Barcelona to study illustration at the Llotja Arts and Crafts School. Since then she’s never stopped painting and drawing for publishing houses and other clients around the world. Her work has won multiple awards including the 2012 International Latino Book Awards Second Place for Best Children’s Picture Book-English and the 2011 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards Gold Medal for Best Illustrator.

Sonja eventually moved back to Germany where she now lives with her family near the German Alps between two rivers and surrounded by forests. 

She loves to draw at the seaside, in the mountains, or in a café, catching ideas in the song of the water, the glance of a passerby, or at the bottom of a cup of coffee. For Sonja, illustrating means the opportunity to bring a little light to people, to move them, and to make them laugh, reflect, and dream.

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