Made in the 956: Brownsville author Stephanie Tovar
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A Rio Grande Valley mom turned her love of reading into a children's book she hopes will help kids learn while they have fun.
Stephanie Tovar was born in Brownsville and spent time in Mexico before returning to the Valley at the age of 8. She says books helped her learn English.
"The easiest thing for me was checking out books and reading," Tovar said.
Years later, her daughter picked up that same love for reading. Her daughter's adventurous spirit inspired Tovar to write her first book, "Make Way for Madison: The Seven Summits."
"The first draft that I made was for her; I just wrote it and read it to her at bedtime, and she said, 'Oh, you should try to make copies and try to get everyone to read this,’" Tovar said.
The book was published over the summer and is now available on Amazon. It follows a character named Madison.
"So it's about a little kid who travels to each of the seven summits, and she learns their names and their heights, and she gets to meet her friend at the mountain," Tovar said.'
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Tovar says the book is more than just a children's story. It gives parents and kids a chance to learn together.
"One fun thing for me as a parent is learning when I'm reading to my daughter and I'm like, 'Oh, I didn't know that,' remembering things, so this is that style for parents to learn the names of the seven tallest peaks on Earth," Tovar said.
Instead of page numbers, each page includes a math problem for kids to solve. Tovar says this is the first book in a series, with the next installment set to explore Brownsville.
"I wanted a tool for parents to use to connect with their kids, to learn with their kids," Tovar said.
Tovar hopes to get the series on bookshelves across the Valley and across the country.
"It's really important that we are putting good things into the world, and so I want to make sure I don't give up on this," Tovar said.
Stephanie Tovar is Made in the 956.
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