Health & Mindfulness Literature for Children

What inspired me to write mindfulness literature and the Donna and Dermot series of picture books? My activist blood and wanting to make the world a better place by awakening people to a different way of being. Awakening people to use that power that we are often scared to use. The power that gets re-directed into people pleasing and other unhealthy habits.

I wanted to immortalize my children. I have two daughters and the main character of Donna is an amalgam of both my girls.

It also draws inspiration from my renowned energy medicine teacher Donna Eden, with whom I trained for three years before graduating as a Clinical Practitioner of Eden Energy Medicine in 2016. She has devised this mind-blowing framework for working with nine different energy systems in the body – subtle energies – including the aura, chakras and meridians.

Donna Eden is always smiling – divinely, radiantly – so too is my Donna in the books. She falls of her bike and is still smiling when her tooth falls out. She smiles even though her grandparents come to visit and eat the last piece of chocolate cake. My daughters are fairly smiley too. I am blessed!

Donna and Dermot on the Move

Then one day in the first book, Donna and Dermot on the Move, Donna’s smile disappears when she moves house away from the countryside to the city. She gets depressed and anxious. She plots to save her pocket money and escape back to her grandparents’ home in the country.

It is her dog, Dermot, who reminds her of the beauty of the present moment. He points out the rainbows and the stars which Donna fails to notice in her dark mood.

Animals are wonderful that way, aren’t they? Reminding us of what is important, and that the only way to live is in the now.

So the first book was published in 2017 and illustrated by the incredible Jamie-Leigh O’Neill. It has sold around 300 copies. I have been delighted at the reception it has had when I have read it in libraries and at holistic fairs. If any schools are reading this, please invite me in to read to your children and their grown ups too. Now that mindfulness literature and being present have become all the rage I feel extremely prescient to have written it.

Donna and Dermot Heal

I always envisaged the book as part of a mindfulness literature series with the same characters. For the second book I wanted to really emphasize that humans have alternatives to conventional modern medicine for their everyday health. Why abrogate our power when we have something free right there in our hands which is available 24/7 and has no side effects?

So Donna and Dermot Heal is about the power of complementary health. Donna is a talented energy healer and massage therapist. She uses the energy from her hands – a power we are all born with and possess – to treat broken arms and twisted ankles. She also uses energy healing on herself and Dermot to assist them to relax and sleep.

In this book Dermot is a skilled essential oils expert and shows us how to blend the oils to treat sunburn, insect bites and bee stings.

This book was published in June with superb illustrations by Jacob Artemenko. It has sold 30 copies with little promotion on my part. I have offered a limited edition of 50 signed copies so if you would like one, then please get in touch with me at: hilda@hildakalap.com

Testimonials

The book seems to have captured the imagination of children and adults alike and has been selling well. Here are a couple of testimonials:

“What beautiful, beautiful books. I read the first one (Donna and Dermot On the Move) to my friend’s three-year-old and he LOVED it!

∼

The ‘Heal’ one is soooooo on point!

∼

I just wish it had been around 20 years ago when I was laughed out of my Masters in Education course for suggesting I teach massage and healing in Personal, Social, Health and Economic sessions! But the time is now and they are FANTASTIC!”

∼

Thanks Hilda for ‘Donna and Dermot Heal’. I’ve read it to my children. It’s great as I do a lot of reiki with them so they are familiar with the concept!! More books like this please!!!