Eating These Foods Makes Me… received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.
Following find an interview with author Kalifa Rodriguez M.Sc, RD, CBS.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
Eating These Foods Makes Me… was published in November of 2021.
What’s the book’s first line?
The first line is: Eating these foods makes me…strong.
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
Eating These Foods Makes Me… is a children’s non-fiction book about nutrition and wellness. It’s a resource for caregivers and parents of picky eaters who want to foster a healthy relationship with food at a young age and introduce the rationale behind making life-long healthy food choices. While repeating positive affirmations that empower young minds to feel confident and excited about eating foods, they also learn basic nutrition concepts about the way different foods help the body function and contribute to our quality of life. Eating These Foods Makes Me… is also beautifully illustrated to celebrate diversity and inclusivity such that children of various genders, racial and cultural backgrounds feel a sense of belonging. Even children with physical and “hidden” intellectual disabilities such as ADHD can recognize themselves in the pages of the book; an aspect of children’s literature that can positively impact readers on so many different levels.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
I was inspired to write this book by my 2-year-old daughter who is a picky eater and who has faced many feeding/nutrition challenges since being born very prematurely. Back then, I would spend my days and nights in the NICU singing, praying, and reading to her, and this sparked my dream to write my own children’s book. Also, after searching for a nutrition-related children’s book that encompassed the values and concepts I wanted to share with my daughter, I noticed there weren’t many available, and since I’m a practicing registered dietitian I figured what better way to share my passion for nutrition than to fulfill that need and write a credible nutrition book for kids.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
To develop food/nutrition intelligence at a young age and promote a healthy lifestyle. As a nutritionist who works with an adult population, I see first hand how many of the health issues people face – from self-esteem and mental health challenges to chronic diseases- could be prevented or at least reduced if they had some prior nutrition related knowledge and developed healthy eating habits earlier in life.
Is this the first book you’ve written?
This is the first book I’ve written and I’m hoping to write more in the future.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
I work at the hospital as a clinical nutritionist in both acute care and outpatient settings.
What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?
Trust your intuition and the process because the possibilities are endless.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
One book I connect with on so many levels is the children’s book “When I Pray for You” by Matthew Paul Turner, it is so beautifully written and illustrated. It makes me emotional almost every time I read it with my family because it’s as though Turner has taken what’s in my heart and expressed it on paper.