Minnetonka Author awarded Moonbeam Children's Book Award

Katy Tessman's book for children about breast cancer, "Our Mama is a Beautiful Garden" has been awarded the Moonbeam Children's Book Award for her dedication to inspiring young people to read and to love books.

Awards Director, Jim Barnes said "Of all the good things we can do for our children, encouraging them to love books and reading may be the most valuable."

From alphabet books for toddlers to young adult books about gender and race, the Moonbeam Awards recognize excellence in categories for children of every age and developmental stage. This year’s 157 medal-winning books were chosen from over 1,000 entries representing U.S., Canadian provinces, and several countries overseas. "Our Mama is a Beautiful Garden" has been awarded the Silver Medal in the Health Issues category.

"During my diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer, I tried to find a book I could read to my two sons, who were 3 and 6 at the time, to help them understand what was happening to me. I wanted a book that instilled hope and explained the basics of cancer. I never found that book." said Tessman about what motivated her to write "Our Mama is a Beautiful Garden." Tessman decided to write her family's breast cancer journey to give young children and families optimism and understanding during a difficult time such as a battle with breast cancer.

"I am so honored to receive this award." said Tessman. "I want to share my special book to not only to cancer centers and librarians, but to parents and young readers. I am hopeful this award will help families around the globe learn about my book."

Established in 2007, the Moonbeams are intended to bring increased recognition to exemplary children’s books and their creators, and to celebrate children’s literature and life-long reading. Presented by Jenkins Group and IndependentPublisher.com in conjunction with the Traverse City Children’s Book Festival, the Moonbeams is a celebration of youthful curiosity, discovery and learning through books and reading.

"Creating books that inspire our children to read, to learn, and to dream is an extremely important task," said Barnes. "The Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards were conceived to reward those efforts."

Tessman is passionate about literacy, maker education, and transforming school libraries. Her professional communications experience, diverse educator background, and involvement in literacy programs has lead her to being a self-published author. Tessman and her two sons live in Minnetonka, MN.

"I believe reading to and with your children will inspire them to become lifelong readers and learners." said Tessman.

The Moonbeam Award winners will be honored at an award ceremony held November 9th, on the evening of the tenth annual Traverse City Children’s Book Festival in Michigan. The day-long festivities are dedicated to childhood literacy and a celebration of books, reading, and the creative and hard-working people who support this essential cause.

Learn more about "Our Mama is a Beautiful Garden" at KatyTessman.com
Learn more about the Moonbeam Children's Book Awards at MoonbeamAwards.com