My Brother Brandon (My Heart Books)($19.99Value)

Description

This is the book that started it all, it is about the author's son who is non-verbal and has a number of other developmental delays. However, he has many things he's great at and shows his love to his sister in his own sweet way. Every My Heart Book is written in a child-friendly way without labels. Not only do these books describe the person’s challenges but focus on what they are great at, ways other people can help them, and what we love about them. At the end of each book, there is a page with additional tools for parents and caregivers to continue the conversation and help teach children about differences and being kind. Books are ultimately about building acceptance and in doing so it’s creating new bonds in the community and stronger relationships within families Fox 5 News, Channel 11 Changemakers, Pop Sugar, and other media have all given My Heart Books accolades for their one-of-a-kind books. These books are not only designed to help children with disabilities but have been shown to foster kindness and acceptance in all children. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could find new ways to create greater understanding and acceptance of people with disabilities amongst our children? My Heart Books is the answer. About the authors: Erica Blit is the mother of Brandon, 14 and Skylar, 10. Brandon was born with a rare genetic disorder which caused a number of medical issues and developmental delays. Because of her vigilance, love and advocacy during Brandon’s early years, Erica was asked to join the Parent Advisory Council at New York Presbyterian Hospital. She served on that council for years helping hospital staff become more sensitive to family’s needs and helping parents navigate the medical system. When her 2 year old daughter started asking questions about why her older brother didn’t speak, Erica decided to write My Brother Brandon to help explain Brandon to her. Years later after seeing how much this helped her young daughter Erica founded www.myheartbooks.com so parents with children with all different types of disabilities could customize their own My Heart Books. Anita Bluestone is Brandon’s grandmother. Despite her over 40 years experience as a Clinical Social Worker, most of which spent working with children with developmental disabilities, the adjustment to having a grandson with his own specialness has given her an insider view of the joys and challenges as a parent/grandparent. This wasn’t the plan but it has been an incredible journey. Anita has done many workshops at Social Work and Caregiver conferences. She is so happy to have her professional life and personal life come together in this unique way.