You Can Shine So Bright! Blog Tour: Author Interview + Giveaway

 

 

Welcome to the Blog Tour for You Can Shine So Bright! by Jeremy & Jinger Vuolo, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: You Can Shine So Bright! 

Author: Jeremy & Jinger Vuolo 

Publisher: WorthyKids 

Release Date: August 23, 2022 

Genre: Christian, Children's Picture Book

Help little ones learn to live by faith and love others well with this picture book from beloved television stars Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo.

This sweet and inspiring book encourages children to let their light shine as they move about the world. As they read along, little readers will be introduced to the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22–23. Written in lighthearted verse, the story follows a group of children as they model love, joy, patience, peace, and more in everyday, relatable scenarios. This book, straight from the heart of the Vuolos, is perfect for families looking for a faith-based story to share together.

PURCHASE LINKS*: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indie Bound | Christianbook

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo are known for living out their faith and family values during their years of television stardom. Jinger first appeared on TLC's 19 Kids and Counting, and later, the couple appeared together on Counting On. Hailing from Springdale, Arkansas, and part of the Duggar family, Jinger is an avid home cook, gifted pianist, and violinist who uses her talents to support the non-profit organization Swan 4 Kids. Jeremy is a former professional soccer player from Downingtown, Pennsylvania, now enrolled in the graduate program at The Master's Seminary. The Vuolos live in Los Angeles, California, with their two children.

Connect with Jinger and Jeremy at their website to follow them on social media or sign up for their newsletter

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Welcome Jinger & Jeremy! Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions and allowing my readers a chance to get to know you and your new children’s book You Can Shine So Bright!.

You Can Shine So Bright! is not your first book, but it is your first children’s book. How was the process different from this to your nonfiction?

Very different! The memoir it was a much more complicated process, in that it was really following our lives before and after meeting. With “You Can Shine So Bright!” we had a singular message that we wanted to share: that through the love of Jesus you can make a huge impact in this world. It’s a simple message but it’s a message at the heart of the gospel! Jesus so often talked about what it meant to follow him and how it would change your life for good. So, “You Can Shine So Bright!” was a bit simpler of a process but not any less important. And in both books we are sharing the same message: the hope we have in Jesus.

What inspired you to want to write a children’s book?

Several things. One is that our two daughters are the target age for a book like this! Every night before, we read a different book, sing a song, and pray. They love the routine and are always eager to choose a new book. So, needless to say, we’ve had children’s books on our mind. Another reason is a desire to see the good news of Jesus being told in an exciting and captivating way to children.

I had the chance to read You Can Shine So Bright! myself and it’s such a sweet book. I’m sure it will become a bedtime favorite for many. What were some of your own childhood favorites, or those you enjoy with your own children?

So, here’s a fun fact: the same little Bible that Jeremy grew up reading—he called it the Bug-Eyed Bible—is the same one we have for the girls! Someone gave it to us as a gift and he couldn’t believe that it was still being printed. All of the characters have huge round eyes… Also, our girls are into anything that has animals or princesses.

What do your children think about the book?

They love it. Evy Jo is into the pictures. Felicity is enjoying reading about the different scenes. We wanted it to be a book that captivated kids, so to see our two little girls get so into it is exciting.

You Can Shine So Bright! focuses on the fruit of the spirit. Aside from reading the book, what other advice would you share with parents on teaching about and encouraging those fruits in their children?

We are not in a place where we should be giving a lot of parenting advice! Our kids are so young and we are learning just as many lessons as they are in these days. But I think we could say a couple things that we’ve learned, from older and wiser parents and that’s to be simple. And to live out the truth that we’re teaching them. If we are saying one thing with her words and doing another thing with her lives, then our words are going to be meaningless. Our children are watching us and learning primarily from their experience of our actions. So, it’s our desire to teach them profound truth in a simple way, and then to show them how that truth affects their parents lives and can affect theirs as well.

Jinger, you had a rather unique experience of growing up on TV. How has that experience of growing up in the public eye and being public figures now impacted how you parent your own children in a world where everything is so public with social media, etc?

Yeah, it’s definitely made me aware of what exposure does. I think Jer and I have chosen to give a lot more privacy to our girls these days. As many remarkable benefits as there are to social media and that sort of instant exposure into someone else’s life and world, there are also some pretty significant downsides to it, as well. So, we’ve chosen to keep them off of our social media accounts and have less exposure to that sort of thing. If they decide one day to share their lives publicly, that can be their decision!

Living in LA (which is not always known for being the most Christian-friendly place), how do you continue to live out your faith where it’s not always popular to do so?

We get asked that a lot! I think among some conservative circles, Los Angeles has a bad reputation as the center of all that is evil. But the reality is that LA is a remarkable place with incredible people and so much to do and so much being done! But, like every city, it is full of people. Some of those people love Jesus and others don’t. But our calling as Christians is to live in the world, to share space and time with people who both do and don’t think like and believe like we do. We want to be Jesus’s hands and feet, to share the good news of the gospel, and to love and serve others as he did. Wherever we are, we want to love God and love people. We do have a great community of Christians here in LA at Grace Church. We have formed some really amazing friendships and feel like this is home.

Is there anything else you would like readers to know about the book?

We hope that you can sense our heart desire behind writing it. We want this to encourage you and to show you the joy of following Jesus. We hope that it is a great addition to your children’s little library that is hopefully growing.

Thank you again for taking the time to answer these questions. Before you go, are there any other projects you are currently working on that you can share?

We recently started releasing some YouTube videos giving some updates on our lives. We share new videos to our Instagram pages, so we hope you follow along!

 

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TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive signed copies of You Can Shine So Bright, The Hope We Hold, and a $50 Visa gift card. (9) additional winners will receive signed copies of You Can Shine So Bright and The Hope We Hold.

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight August 23, 2022 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on August 30, 2022. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

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