An American children book: Journey to the USA

If you are an American parent living in a foreign country or if you have dear American expat friends with kids, you are in for a treat with this original book for expat children, from American babies to toddlers and above.

As an American expat, with your kids living in diverse and beautiful countries out there, it is hard to slow down the pace and consider how well-connected is your child to USA culture and traditions. Have you shared your perspective, the lovely childhood memories growing up in the USA, or explained the differences between the different US states and the country you are currently living in? We feel there should be better support out there for American parents like yourself.

No matter how you would call or define your child, an American kid, an expat child or a third culture child, he or she is growing up between two or more cultures. There is your US culture. There is the culture of the home country you are currently residing in. There is the culture of your partner if he or she is coming from a different culture and there can be in many instances the culture of the company employing you or your partner. Your child gets exposed in various doses to all of those cultures. This is the story of his or her life. It is a mixture that leaves your child in the middle, sometimes confused, sometimes feeling I do not belong here, sometimes feeling like he has no strong roots anywhere. It is essential then to initiate regular discussions together focusing on topics related to your family heritage, your American roots, the differences, and why they exist. Beyond the talks, being part of an American expat community can help as the kid, at an early age is looking to his/her family and the surrounding environment (read community) and tries to mirror the two of them.  The personalised children book Journey to the USA gets you going with fun and entertaining illustrations for the little one, supported by open questions and descriptive dialogue, all centred around the US and the journey to get there.

Another aspect is related to the American military kids, the children born and/or growing up in American bases in different countries of the world. Despite having a tight community, the feelings of belonging and confusion are still there. There is an outside world, across the base camp, there is a larger outside world where other family relatives live, and there is the family environment. It is essential to share with the American kids in these situations the beautiful adventures and memories linking you back to the US, understand the traditions, what defines the US culture. With our beautiful illustrated storybook, we aim to achieve just that. The book encourages you to go further and experience sharing and preparing a typical meal together, share the particularities of the place you were born in the USA and other spots across the country where family relatives live, or you like them for particular reasons. This kids' book aims to make natural the feeling of proud to be an American while telling your own story.

We would love to hear from you regarding how you do it as an American expat parent raising your children abroad. What issues are you encountering trying to adapt to new cultures and maintain the closeness to your home culture, the US heritage? How active or distinctive is your American expat community surrounding you, and why is that? How do you do it when your partner is from another culture, and you try to embrace a multi-cultural attitude for your children reasonably? What children books about USA are you reading, which helps with dealing with these American expat views? How are children born in the USA regarded in the country you are currently living in? What personal stories are you sharing with your non-American communities that you are part of with your children?