Beautiful by Stacy McAnulty

I've been lucky to be able to know prolific author Stacy McAnulty. She's the author of many books for children, but this is the book that has my heart. This is the book, and the reminder, that picture books are for ALL ages. This book was for me. This book was for my 11-year-old daughter on her birthday. We both cried when I read it to her. I make the world beautiful. My daughter makes the world beautiful. Each of you, readers, make the world beautiful. I'm so grateful for Stacy and her powerful book. Below I've included excerpts from her newsletter. I hope you'll get your hands on BEAUTIFUL and read it to all the females, old and young, in your life. "BEAUTIFUL breaks barriers by showing girls free to be themselves: splashing in mud, conducting science experiments, and shooting baskets. This book will encourage all girls to embrace who they are and realize their endless potential."

Beautiful: Simple Yet Complicated Beautiful (written by me and illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff) is a book of few words. But the topic of beauty and how it impacts girls is incredibly complicated. My editor Lisa wrote me a four-page letter while we were revising this book, and I sent her back the polished manuscript and an essay. I believe it's the first time she'd ever received an essay with a picture book manuscript. I'd love to share with you some of the things Lisa and I learned while creating this book. (Don't worry. It's not the full essay.) We compliment little girls on their looks and not other strengths. I've noticed that I do this often. Meeting a young girl, I might say, "You're so cute," or "I love your hair." ... I need to stop making appearances the first part of the conversation. Compliments are great, but I now try to look deeper. The mirror is different for everyone. Women often use the mirror to study flaws: wrinkles, gray hairs, bags under the eyes... Young children can consider a mirror a toy and enjoy making goofy faces or trying to outwit their reflection. Is there a way to keep young girls from seeing the mirror as a tool for self-criticism? My definition of beauty. My editor asked me to create a definition for this book. What did I want to convey? After reading countless articles, blog posts, and research, this is my definition of what it means to be BEAUTIFUL. True beauty is a confidence found in what you do and how you feel. When a girl is doing something kind or challenging or fun, her inner beauty overwhelms her exterior, no matter what she wears or how her hair looks. When a girl feels empowered or strong or smart, the same thing happens.

Learn more about BEAUTIFUL and Stacy McAnulty here