By Catherine Richard
Lytle blogger, lab technician and mother of three will be at Shops of Lytle from 2-5 p.m. on Dec. 21 to sign her first published children’s book.
The book, which is titled “Would You Rather Bible Water Adventure,” is bilingual, with the story written in English, followed by the Spanish translation.
This is the realization of a longtime dream for Jerah Alvarado, who has always wanted to work with books, either as a librarian or a writer.
Now, Alvarado is combining two of her greatest passions in her first book series: her faith and the Spanish language.
Growing up in a bilingual household, Alvarado would alternate between speaking Spanish with her mother and English with her father. Through the years, she has come to count her upbringing as a blessing.
“It is a privilege to be bilingual,” Alvarado said. “It’s an important skill and it allows you to connect with more people.”
Now, Alvarado is hoping to share that experience with other families, who can practice reading and speaking Spanish while exploring timeless Bible stories.
She was inspired to create this book by her second daughter, who struggled to concentrate on normal children’s books. In “Would You Rather,” readers get to choose between different Bible water adventures, whether it is the story of Moses on the Nile River or the story of Jonah in the belly of a whale.
Between the bright illustrations and different stories, Alvarado aims to create a book that children will interact with and get invested in.
Despite this book being her first published work, Alvarado has been writing and creating for years.
In 2018, she started her book blog, which is called “Faith and Books”, or FAB for short. FAB has been Alvarado’s space to review books and write about faith and family. It was around this time that Alvarado also began “learning the craft,” attending writing conferences and meeting agents.
While seeking to publish this book, Alvarado connected with Mt. Zion Ridge Press. Mt. Zion Ridge Press was interested in creating bilingual books and found a perfect match in Alvarado, offering her a three-book contract and appointing her as their official translator.
“I think I started crying,” Alvarado said, “I was so happy.”
Alvarado is currently writing the next two installments of her series, while raising her daughters with her husband Robert, “surviving on coffee and thriving on grace.”
Her book is available on Amazon and she can be contacted through https://www.jerahalvarado.com/. She can also be found on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jerahwrites/ and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJerah.
