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Courage Over Fear
Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear follows a young girl that must conquer her fear of water in order to attend her best friend’s birthday party. What inspired you to write this picture book?
When we started teaching our children about having a positive mindset and our positive and negative inner voices we came up with this great idea of a character called Sticky Icky Vicky, who must deal with water fear and face her inner voices.
The book is vaguely based on our youngest daughter’s fear of water. At the time Rhea was having great difficulty being introduced to water and learning to swim because she had grommets in her ears, (tiny tubes inserted into the eardrum to treat a build up of fluid in the middle ear and prevent recurrent ear infections), after having repeated ear infections and didn’t like putting her head under water.
The art in this book is fantastic. What was the art collaboration process like with the illustrator Noor Alshalabi?
The art work is fantastic in that it’s vibrant, very imaginative and completely distinctive.
Noor Alshalabi is a Jordan based picture book illustrator while my husband and I are based In Canberra, Australia. All the collaboration for this amazing art work and illustrations for Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear was done through email, with the occasional phone call or FaceTime. This is all a testament to Noor’s brilliant communication skills and ability to work as part of a team. She is very skilled at reading into our comments and creating something amazing. We are very happy to have her working with us.
What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?
The principle message we want to pass across is that – it is okay to have fear, but it is not okay to let the fear stop you from doing what you like, love or need to do.
Courage over Fear offers children an inspirational/loveable heroine who learns some valuable lessons like courage, positive thinking and goal-setting. It is a reading experience that leaves children believing that they, like Vicky, can get past any obstacle in their way.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
The second book in the Sticky Icky Vicky series is called “Sticky Icky Vicky: Choosing to Be Myself.”
It follows Vicky and her love for playing in the mud, getting all icky and sticky. But when a school bully starts making fun of her, Vicky’s love for mud play is dashed. That is, until she learns about upcoming International Mud Day. Vicky wants nothing more than to get in on the fun—but first she needs to stop listening to other people’s opinions.
Sticky Icky Vicky: Choosing to Be Myself will be available for purchase from March 2022.
Author Links: Amazon | GoodReads
In Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear, the first book in the Sticky Icky Vicky™ series, authors Alysia and Michael Ssentamu introduce readers to Vicky, a fun-loving girl who doesn’t mind getting a little sticky and icky. She loves rolling down hills and playing in mud—but when it comes to water, Sticky Icky Vicky’s fear prevents her from joining in the fun. Then Vicky gets an invitation for a waterpark party, and she decides that she really wants to go—even if it means ignoring the Negative Ned voice in her head and getting over her fear.
With vibrant illustrations and catchy rhymes, Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear offers children an inspirational/loveable heroine who learns some valuable life lessons, such as:
Courage
Positive thinking
Goal-setting
Aimed primarily at readers aged six to ten, Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear is a reading experience that leaves kids believing that they, like Vicky, can get past any obstacle in their way.
Sticky Icky Vicky
Vicky loves the outdoors. It doesn’t matter how dirty the activity is, Vicky does it with all her heart. She is very proud of her nickname Sticky Icky Vicky that was given to her by her two best friends Rhea and Betty. Vicky did have one fear though, water. When she was just three years old she almost drowned in the ocean. Her dad saved her, but ever since she avoids the water, even baths. But one day Betty invites Vicky to her birthday party and it is at a waterslide park. Vicky must overcome her fear or she will not be able to go to the party.
Picture book Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear by authors Alysia and Michael Ssentamu tells the story of a courageous young girl that has to battle her fear of the water in order to not miss out on fun things with her friends. Believe in yourself is the theme of the book and it is presented in a tangible way that elementary school-age children will be able to conceptualize.
Illustrator Noor Alshalabi uses her colorful and whimsical drawings to engage children in this heartwarming story of overcoming fears. The stunning artwork will draw in readers and really bring this meaningful story to life. The authors include at the end of the book statements and questions for teachers and parents to use to open up the discussion of fear with children. This is an invaluable resource for this complex topic. Another great inclusion to this extraordinary children’s book is a QR code to the audio reading of the book.
Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear is a great character-building picture book for elementary-age children. Parents and teachers will love the resources included in helping bring home this topic and make the concept approachable to children.
Pages: 38 | ASIN : B09JHXG2NM
LITERARY TITAN 