Have you seen that fabulous idea where your family can count down the days to Christmas by wrapping up 24 Christmas books? I love this idea of including holiday books to get excited about Christmas. And it doesn’t take too long to work in a children’s Christmas book each night. That being said, I really need to work on building up my Christmas library. I was so excited to learn about Papa’s Book of Mormon Christmas by Emma Rae Parker and illustrated by Alexa Terry Hanson was at my local Deseret Book Store. I met Emma while I was a leader in the youth group at my church. I was never her leader but worked with the girls just younger than her. I am so impressed that she has written her first book. Of course we had to add it to our library. Her parents are also very dear to me.
Not only do I love Christmas books, but I am trying every chance I have to feel the spirit with my children. I was intrigued by the title of this book. I don’t have many Book of Mormon Christmas books. I pick up this book this last weekend and I am having my children unwrap it December 1st! I am excited to see what they think about it. I liked that Emma chose a Grandfather to share his story and experiences. The illustrations are colorful and fun. I think this book would be a great conversation starter. There are so many things you can talk about with your family and children.
I contacted Emma and she agreed to answer some questions for me. I love that I can share a little more about this author and her first book.
1. I really loved how this book focuses on a relationship between a Grandfather and his granddaughter. What inspired you to choose Papa as one of your main characters?
Little Alice was based off of all my nieces and nephews and their ridiculously precious personalities. I find their relationships with my dad captivating because it is so different from mine with him. I feel like the grandparent relationship is so important even though many of us have missed out on some or they have been short lived. I know I was positively impacted from all my grandparents, even those I never met.
There was one personal detail that I included from my own childhood. I was a bit of a punk, and with four brothers, had no interest in being called “princess.” My dad would call me “Angel” instead, and even though I thought that was still too cutesy, I let him get away with it. Along with the Christmas correlation, that is why I had Papa call Alice “Angel.” But for the most part, Papa is based off of my dad to his grandkids.
2. I love how this book not only shares an uplifting message but also shows fun family traditions. What kind of traditions are dear to your family at Christmas?
Living so far away from extended family, Christmas was one of the only times of the year we would spend with them. This was another reason I made the grandpa a major part of the story, because Christmas meant being with family to me. Of course treats are a big tradition as well, which is why Alice and her grandpa had to invest a quality amount of time in cookies.
3. Is this children’s book based off of your family? Or did this story just speak to your heart?
Only the characters’ personalities are based off of my family. The story is fictionalized because I wanted to share a story about how much needed to be sacrificed for the Book of Mormon when it was new. It was an expensive book, so families would often have to push off items essential to living in that time period in order to afford it. Because The Book of Mormon is so accessible now, its difficult to understand the sacrifice many families gave. I hoped that this sacrifice (that Papa’s papa gave) would not only convey the importance of the stories, but also the importance of families. Alice is an extremely young girl, but when she can tell that something is important to her beloved Papa, she is willing to give up her toys in order to show that he and his book are important to her as well.
4. This children’s book mentions Alice’s love for gifts. What is the best present you have ever received at Christmas?
My parents would spoil us with big toys and bikes when I was little. Of course back then those were what I thought were the best gifts. The bigger the present, the more Santa loved us, right? I try to be more righteous, but I still love getting and giving great presents.
The one Christmas that really stands out to me was in the early 2000s when the Newport Beach Temple was being built. My parents had told us that we wouldn’t be getting many presents because they would be donating that money to the temple construction instead. At the time, I had thought something along the lines of, “Way to ruin Christmas, Temple.” We hardly noticed a smaller Christmas gift-wise. Now that I have been sealed to my husband and future kids in that temple, it’s pretty cool to think that the Newport temple was my Christmas present in a way. Way to go, mom and dad.
5. I love how this Christmas book reminds us the importance of The Book of Mormon. What are so other ways we can tried to include the Gospel and our Savior in our lives during this season?
I know there’s always criticism about the commercial aspect of Christmas, but I am really all for it! It seems that people are generally kinder during the holiday craziness (perhaps aside from mall parking lot road rage), and what would Jesus want more than more kindness? You can always read more scriptures and put together nativities, but I think the best way to keep Jesus in mind during Christmas is by serving. It’s so easy to serve during Christmas. If your brothers are weirded out by you vacuuming their room, you can blame it on a Christmas miracle and save your street cred.
6. I love how this story helps connect generations together. As Alice learns more about her Grandfather, his service to our country, and where he turns for peace and comfort she can feel close to him and learn how to get help when she needs it. Did any of your Grandparents serve in the our armed services?
My dad’s dad did serve in WWII. And his wife, sweet Grandma Helen was training to be a pilot right as the war was ending.
7. As this is your first book, tell us what is your favorite part in writing a book?
There are so many fun parts to writing a book, and I guess that is necessary because there are a lot of hard parts to writing one too. Two of my favorite parts specifically come to mind. The first is coming up with the idea and shaping how everything will fit together before you write anything. The first glimpse of a story is pretty exciting.
My other favorite part is once you get the first draft down right before you read it again. It’s thrilling to know that you have a story on those pages created from scratch. It will still need a lot of work—it’s basically just the bones—but that is the point that you have created something from nothing.
8. And finally the question we all have been dying to know. Are there any desert tortoise books you are working on?
Desert tortoise love! I definitely wrote my fair share of turtle stories when I was little when the obsession was strong. I would guess that the market for desert tortoise lovers like us would be pretty slim. But you are giving me some fabulous ideas to give a desert tortoise a minor role in a book one day. I will absolutely do that just for you, Kristie.
A big thank you to Emma Rae Parker for sharing her heart with us today!!! In case you were wondering my kids are absolutely in love with her childhood home pet, a loveable desert tortoise. They would be thrilled to see a tortoise in a future book. Be sure to look for her book Papa’s Book of Mormon Christmas which would make for a lovely book to add to your Christmas collection. I am looking forward to talking to my children after we read this together as a family.
Check out her website for more information and ways to connect with her. And I am thrilled to announce she will be at book signings in Orange County, California and in Salt Lake City Utah as well. You can find those dates on her Events Page. And if you missed the blog book tour be sure to check out this site where you can read lots of other great reviews for her book!
For more ideas on encourage your child to love reading head over to my post to find more fun ways to get your child to fall in love with reading!
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