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“It may be small, but it’s mighty…”

When I met my newborn book for the first time, it wasn’t love at first sight. I held the tiny tome* in my hand, eyeing it critically, wondering what people would think. Couldn’t she write a book with more pages? Would they think it lacked substance?

A smallish gift book was what I’d planned all along, a volume so not intimidating and so visually appealing that even the most reluctant parent reader would consider picking it up. But when my agent and I met with my editor and the company’s CEO last month via Zoom and learned that Mango had reversed their earlier decision and now planned to print The Invisible Toolbox in soft cover instead of hard, my heart dropped. I was not only disappointed; I was worried. Would a softcover gift book have the same appeal as hardcover?

Mango’s marketing department was concerned that titles comparable to mine were priced at a rate with which a hardcover book wouldn’t be able to compete. Like a wounded parent, I protested: But my book is unique! There isn’t anything out there quite like it. They weren’t moved. And so the decision was made. It was out of my hands.

“I wasn’t sure I could sell it. But then I couldn’t resist.”


When Federal Express left a carton of complimentary author copies on my doorstep this week, I called my agent. “It’s so little.”

She laughed. “Remember, I almost didn’t sign you because the book is so small. I wasn’t sure I could sell it. But then I couldn’t resist.” Julia believes in the message and understands what’s at stake. For her, it’s all about saving democracy. Maybe you’ve seen the meme: A child who reads will be an adult who thinks.

Thank you, Julia, for blowing away any lingering wisps of self-doubt. The Invisible Toolbox may be small. And it may even have a softcover. But its message is mighty.

* An oxymoron, I know, but I like the alliteration.

Thank you, Amy Dickinson, for Endorsing THE INVISIBLE TOOLBOX!

Along with the down to earth advice she shares daily in her syndicated column “Ask Amy” ever since replacing Ann Landers in 2003, Amy Dickinson is a best-selling author and regular panelist on NPR’s “Wait! Wait! Don’t Tell Me!” I couldn’t be more delighted to have her endorsement for The Invisible Toolbox: The Power of Reading to Your Child from Birth to Adolescence. Amy’s words were so beautifully written that my publisher put them right on the front cover:

“Kim Jocelyn Dickson has given us a gift. In lively and loving language, she opens The Invisible Toolbox and shows us what’s inside: opportunities for connection, inspiration, imagination, conversation, and joyful play. Literacy encompasses so much more than the important ability to read. Parents, teachers, and all who love children will be inspired by the author’s passionate advocacy, and helpful, compassionate instruction.”

When you read the “Ask Amy” column daily, as I do, you come to realize that Amy Dickinson is a book lover. Each year on her mother’s birthday in early December, she steps away from readers’ questions in her column to advocate for literacy through a tradition called “A Book on Every Bed.” Amy attributes her passion for reading to her mother, with whom she shared a lifelong love for and conversation about books.  For Christmas or any holiday or birthday she recommends placing a wrapped book on the foot of the bed of a child so that it’s the first thing they wake up to on that special day. Once your child unwraps it, snuggling up and sharing it together make a lasting memory. 

Amy understands the powerful connection that can happen when a parent shares a book with a child. I couldn’t be more honored that The Invisible Toolbox has the endorsement of this wise woman who also happens to be an enthusiastic champion for books and reading. Thank you, Amy Dickinson!

Available for pre-order now!