You Are Lovable

Sometimes we forget that we were meant to be. In the fallout of life, relationships, shame and intimacy, we can become lost. You Are Lovable helps children learn messages of love and worthiness through repetition and simple language. Suitable for children of all ages, including inner children.

The story is a poem reminding the reader of her or his inherent worth. Sometimes we forget that we were meant to be. In the fallout of life, relationships, shame and intimacy, we can become lost. Some of us grow up with parents who are unwell or absent in one way or another. Some of us experience trauma. You Are Lovable helps us to learn to offer ourselves loving messages through repetition and simple language. Each stanza is paired with a character from Jasser's imagination, chosen from over 150 pages of thumbnails that he drew over a year's time for the purpose of this project. This poem was inspired by his soulful, vulnerable drawings, and his illustrations were inspired by the poem. It developed organically with the help of the Los Feliz Charter School for the Arts Artist in Residency program, in which we participated in late 2016. Our book may be compared to I Wish You More by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, and it's also in the same vein as Welcome by Mo Willems. Like our book, it handles the messiness of life with compassion and gentle acceptance. Our book uses imaginary characters, as opposed to human characters, to relate to the experience of the reader, and simple, colorful figures on a white background.

Rachel is a costume designer based in Los Angeles, California. You Are Lovable is her first children's book. She was inspired to write this book by the grace of God and the healing she has sought through 12 step spirituality. As an adult affected by the family disease of alcoholism, she has faced a lifelong struggle with self-esteem and self-worth. She hopes that her writing offers healing, self-worth and love to all children everywhere, including the inner child in each of us. She has always enjoyed writing, and looks forward to future collaborations with Jasser on more books like this one.