Avocado The Turtle

“Be yourself and embrace the moment, even if others rejected you.” - Avocado the Turtle Avocado is not a normal turtle. She is rejected by the other turtles for being too friendly. One day, they decide she should no longer be welcomed in their turtle group, and she is sent away. Upset at first, she eventually meets new friends and starts to understand it doesn't matter what people want her to be. Join Avocado on her journey to find her true self. #### Editiorial Reviews #### "This simple tale of a misfit turtle offers a charming lesson to children about the importance of self-acceptance." -- Publishers Weekly BookLife Reviews. "The Shankars, a father-daughter writing team, have imbued this short tale with a lot of heart." -- Publishers Weekly BookLife Reviews. "The illustrations add a 3D pop and a welcome splash of color, capturing the emotions of Avocado's banishment, her period of exile, and her happy life with her newfound friends. The lushly colored backgrounds, cute animals, and appealing nature imagery give children a lot to look at." -- Publishers Weekly BookLife Reviews.

牛油果並不是一隻普通的海龜。她因為太友好而被其他海龜朋友們拒絕。有一天，他們決定了不再歡迎她加入海龜團體，於是她被送走了。一開始，她非常沮喪，但最終她遇到了新朋友，並開始明白到，其實其他人用如何的眼光看她並不重要。加入牛油果的旅程，尋找真正的自我。 「做你自己，即使別人拒絕你，你也要珍惜這一刻。」 - 海龜牛油果 --- Avocado is not a normal turtle. She is rejected by the other turtles for being too friendly. One day, they decide she should no longer be welcomed in their turtle group, and she is sent away. Upset at first, she eventually meets new friends and starts to understand it doesn't matter what people want her to be. Join Avocado on her journey to find her true self.

Avocado and her friends Lemon, Bacon, and Honey are having a fun picnic. There, her friends find out that Avocado's birthday is coming up soon. They decide to plan a surprise party for her. But keeping it a secret is hard. Can they pull off the perfect birthday party for Avocado? Find out in this heartwarming book about the power of friendship and the joy of special occasions. "True friendship brings joyfulness to one's life." —Kiara Shankar & Vinay Shankar

Join Nacho, a smart and spirited cat, as he starts his first day of school! In this delightful story for young readers, Nacho discovers that being nervous is okay—it’s a sign of bravery and a chance to face fears. With supportive friends, a kind teacher, and a dash of courage, Nacho learns that every challenge is an opportunity for adventure. Will he overcome his worries and make his first day unforgettable? Find out in this heartwarming tale of confidence, friendship, and the joy of learning! “Sometimes being nervous is okay; it means you’re brave and ready to face your fears.” - Kiara Shankar & Vinay Shankar About the Authors: Kiara Shankar is a talented sixteen-year-old author and songwriter from San Francisco, California, USA. In addition to her passion for writing, she enjoys reading and creating artwork. Her recent book, Avocado the Turtle, has been translated into fifteen languages, including Spanish, German, Italian, French, traditional Chinese, simplified Chinese, Hebrew, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Kannada, Ukrainian, and more. Vinay Shankar is a software professional who was inspired by his daughter’s passion for writing and songwriting and decided to collaborate with her. Together, their creative efforts have given life to great ideas! The father-daughter duo’s pop hits, sung by Marla Malvins, Primrose Fernetise, Francesca Shankar, Vin Cooper, and SpotZ the Frenchie, are now available for streaming on popular platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, and more. Learn more at the publisher’s website: www.vikipublishing.com.

Avocado the Turtle - Simplified Chinese Edition: "做你自己，即使别人拒绝你，你也要珍惜这一刻。" - 海龟牛油果

Welcome to Black Cat Weekly #31. This time, the lineup includes pretty much everything fans look for in fantasy and science fiction—time travel, pyramids, space adventure, alternate history, war, monkeys, and even Nazi spies. Does it get much better than that? Not to forget our mystery readers, for them we have time travel, a private detective, police, international adventure, war, a solve-it-yourself puzzler, and even Nazis. (Did I mention there’s some overlap between the fantastic and the mysterious in this issue? Surprise! There is.) I leave you to sort it out among yourselves. In case you need some help, here’s the breakdown: Non-Fiction: “Speaking with Joe Haldeman,” conducted by Darrell Schweitzer [interview] Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “The Dutiful Rookie,” by James Holding [short story] “A Wee Bit Of Dough,” by Hal Charles [solve-it-yourself mystery] “The Case of the Truculent Avocado,” by Mark Thielman [Barb Goffman Presents short story] Paying the Price, by Nicholas Carter [novel] “Van Goghing, Goghing, Gone,” by Alan Orloff [Michael Bracken Presents short story] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Van Goghing, Goghing, Gone,” by Alan Orloff [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “How High Your Gods Can Count,” by Tegan Moore [Cynthia Ward Presents short story] “How We Came Back From Mars,” by Ian Watson [Darrell Schweitzer Presents short story] “Death by Proxy,” by Malcolm Jameson[short story] Bring the Jubilee, by Ward Moore [novel]

Let cookies be your new canvas! Now these sweet treats are also a creative outlet for imagination and arty crafting skills. Anyone can learn easy techniques for transforming plain cookies into little works of art following the step-by-step instructions and detailed photography found inside Sweet Art: Creature Cookies. Beginning with the cookies themselves, best-selling author and reknowned sugar artist Autumn Carpenter gives you her favorite recipes with tried-and-true tips for baking cookies that are perfect for decorating. See amazing ways to use common cookie cutters to create cute animal shapes. Learn the basics and beyond of piping buttercream icing, decorating with fondant, decorating with run-sugar icing, and so much more. Create over 80 different animal cookies. Discover many interesting ways to create textures for fur, feathers, or fish scales. Explore lots of possibilities for color combinations and blending. The creature cookies is this book represent all corners of the globe from earth, sea, and sky: safari, farm, forest, jungle, desert, lake, and ocean; even family pets! "Once again the amazing Autumn Carpenter has pooled her creative genius in creating a new and exciting book. Creature Cookies features Autumn's unique approach to fun, whimsical, and easy to create cookies. Written with easy to follow step-by-step instructions and full-color illustrations will make this book a must have for all cookie decorating enthusiasts." - Chef Nicholas Lodge, Pastry Chef and Master Sugar Artist (Atlanta, Georgia) "Autumn Carpenter has sugar running through her veins. She comes from a long line of industry leaders and committed sugar artists that have excelled both artistically and commercially. Her skill set is proven, techniques exhibit quality, and her tutorials are accurate telling the whole story. Definitely for the cute at heart!" - Kerry Vincent, International Cake Exploration Societe Hall of Fame 2004, Dessert Professional Hall of Fame 2010, Food Network Challenge judge and host of Save My Bakery "Autumn Carpenter's new book is a delight! The ideas are new and creative and the techniques are easy enough for anyone to master. This book would be a great gift for young or old!" - Colette Peters, Colette's Cakes in New York City, author of five books on cakes and cake decorating, renowned educator, and recipient of multiple awards in the culinary arts