Heart-warming story pushes the boundary of children’s lit
‘Papa’s Gift’
By Genny Javellana
BananaHeart + SoulSnax
May 2012
“Papa’s Gift” is a moving story that touches on the relationship between father and daughter.
Written and illustrated by Genny Javellana, it is a story based on events from the author’s life. Weaving deeply personal story and dialogue with whimsical imagery, Javellana creates an inter-generational, cross-cultural, and bittersweet experience for readers, both young and old. It is a story of love and cancer.
The story germinated from Javellana’s desire to tell her daughter about the special circumstances that led to her birth and of the significant role played by the grandfather she never knew.
Told in Javellana’s unique voice using some of her native Filipino dialect, the story comes to life with her original illustrations that were “finger-painted” entirely on an iPhone with the Autodesk Sketchbook App. More notable than Javellana’s artistic style was her ability to create most of the drawings during her bus commute to work between Manhattan and New
Jersey.
“I love how modern technology allowed me to paint without getting my fingers messy,” she said. “And having the ‘undo’ feature handy after the bus hit a pot-hole was a big plus.”
Javellana has loved writing and drawing since her childhood in the Philippines. “Papa’s Gift” is her first self-illustrated book. She also pursues a career in legal marketing. She lives with her husband and two children in New Jersey.
“’Papa’s Gift’ is the perfect reminder that a parent can be gone, but their love is here to stay forever. It made me laugh and cry at the same time,” writes book reviewer ‘Carina’ in Amazon.
“Papa’s Gift” is now available through Amazon’s Kindle platform.
Indeed, a good story for young child or children.