In the Principle’s Office

Dear Mrs. Gioti, it is a great honor to host you on our blog and of course we are looking forward to welcoming you at our school in the near future in the context of the celebration of the World Children’s Book Day on 2/4/2023.

AT: Tell us what made you get involved in writing and illustrating children’s books?

MG: For as long as I can remember myself, I have loved children’s books. I admired the authors and illustrators. I studied visual communication and illustration at one of the best universities in the genre in New York City, and children’s books were always one of my favorite subjects. For fifteen years in advertising, I practiced making short stories that encapsulate the whole essence of an idea in just a few lines. When my daughter was born, I read many more children’s books and saw them from a different perspective, this time not from the artist’s point of view, but from the parent’s. So, I discovered that the stories I had written and filed away in a drawer not only could stand alongside most of the children’s books our daughter and I had read, but they had a lot to say. Lucky for me, my publisher agreed. That’s how I started doing something I love professionally and discovered that I love living at a place that anything is possible.

AT: What is it that inspires you to create new books?
MG: The need to make the next generation better and happier.

AT: How do you think is the best way to get kids to love books?
MG: I think the best way is to help them discover the magical world of books. To show them that books are fun, not a chore, until they discover that one book that will make them lifelong readers.

AT: What do you want children to learn when you introduce them to “The Fluff of Happiness”?

MG: I want them to have fun with the story and to realize that they have so much in their lives for which they can feel grateful. They should learn to appreciate what they already have.

Gratitude nourishes our soul and, as proven by studies done on children, is directly linked to happiness. This means that developing gratitude at an early age helps children become happier adults. But when we talk about gratitude, we mean more than just saying “thank you” politely; it’s a conscious exercise in which children learn to feel gratitude for what they already have, the little things, the everyday things, the things we often take for granted. It takes a moment to change the perspective with which we see the world and accept things as they are, instead of what they could be.

AT: In closing, and before we thank you for your time, we would like to let our school parents know that we will have the pleasure of welcoming you to our school on March 30, 2023, for an interactive play with our children presenting your book “The Fluff of Happiness”.

MG: Thank you so much for the invitation and I look forward to meeting you all in person!