Welcome
to the May 2013
Dernier
Publishing
newsletter!
Appreciating
Families
We
can all take our families for granted. Who was it that said that you
don't know what you're missing till it's gone? Sadly, people all over
the world will be missing loved ones today – through bereavement,
separation, divorce, illness, kidnappings, war, slavery, bombings,
disasters and tragedies of too many kinds. Our hearts go out to
people we know who are suffering, and those who we hear about on the
news. But there is something we can do. Not
for everyone, of course. But we can make a real difference, every
day to the people in our
world. And as they say, charity begins at home! After my first
husband died, I went on a campaign to make every day special. My
daughter and I wore clothes we had previously kept for 'best', lit
candles for the evening meal, toasted marshmallows over the fire,
walked in the woods . . . for no reason other than that we were
together. We brought a rescue dog home (10 years later he's still
with us!). We didn't wait for a special occasion to have a special
day. None of us knows how long we have. We all of us need to love,
laugh, live, NOW while we can. Our loved ones don't need our PRESENTS
anything like as much as they need our PRESENCE. Why not grab the
opportunity to do something fun/silly/memorable with the people who
need you most, today? You won't regret it. (Unless someone takes an
embarrassing photo of you :-))
My
child doesn't like reading
Some don't, of
course, but do they enjoy you reading to them?
Most do! Family stories are a great way to spend quality time
together. Discussing the plot and the characters' reactions to events
is a great way to open communication, too. Children make sense of
their world through stories, and this can be a great way for you, and
them, to explore how they feel about things.
News!
A
handful of our books are on their way to a children's home in Mumbai,
India, and another pack to a school in a desperately poor area of
Kenya. How amazing that former street kids will be reading
Dernier books! Please pray for these precious children. Could you
send a pack of books to a children's home/school you support?
We
have a SPECIAL OFFER running for our 'Prayer – just do it! Praying
for Church Leaders' booklets on our website.
Bless
your minister/vicar/pastor! Offer ends next week, so don't delay.
http://www.dernierpublishing.com/offers_may13.php
I
recently attended the Christian Resources Together retreat at The
Hayes in Swanwick, to
meet retailers from Christian bookshops all over the U.K. (plus a
couple from a Christian bookshop in Denmark and two ladies from
Ireland!). Lots of other publishers were there, too, and we had a
great time. The only problem was that it wasn't long enough :-) This
is me with our display (right). Some new shops made orders for our
books – please do pray for more orders, so we can reach as many
children as we can.
Sharing
the wealth!
I thought it would
be good to share some of our latest reviews with you – perhaps we
ought to have a regular 'share the wealth' spot! To start the
ball rolling, author Mary Weeks Millard sent the following: "Last
week I had an adult from the Weymouth Methodist Church call in to
tell me that she had bought one of my children's books and so loved
it and it helped her spiritually, even though she had really bought
it for her granddaughter." How cool is that!
And here are some
reviews from a group of Year 5 children who read our books at school:
“I
liked this book very much. I think that the overall message from this
book is that people from different countries can be friends, that we
are all equal and that God does answer prayers such as those of the
boy found under the tamarind tree.” - Lottie
(Under the Tamarind Tree)
“I
would happily read this book over and over again!”
- Caitlin (The Birthday Shoes)
“The
story starts like a normal story but as you read on you realise how
special and different this book is to the normal adventure or comedy.
The book shows that no one should be afraid of anything if they
believe in Jesus and God. Nobody should be afraid after reading this
book to find someone they trust and tell them of their fears. This
person might be able to help you and your fear. It is a story that
shows that everywhere, even in the darkness, is full of light. This
is a moving story with an ending that makes tears be wiped away and
replaced with hope."
-
Alicia (Deepest Darkness)
“This
book is quite emotional. Although I would say it is a heart-warming
story, it shows you how unfortunate some children in Africa are and
also how caring they are. This book is about a little boy's dream to
be a pilot but I think it deviates a bit (in a good way) because they
have a lot of problems. But then life isn't perfect, is it? It paints
very detailed pictures in your head almost like you were there! I
think the message in this story is : even in tough situations, 'God
will always make a path for you if you respect and pray to him.'”
- Bryonie (Living in Hope)
Well as usual,
I've run out of room and I could say so much more! But until next
time, may the Lord bless you all and keep you. And thank you all so
much for your support and prayers – with your help we will keep
pressing forward :-)
P.S. Yup, that's
my rescue dog!
P.P.S. If you have
any stories of how our books have encouraged or inspired, please do
'share the wealth': info@dernierpublishing.com
I look forward to hearing from you :-)
