Seamus is Back!

“Seamus the Sheltie” is Back With More New and Exciting Adventures

Corinth, MS, April 3, 2011 - Now your child can “Laugh and Learn” again with Seamus as the gentle sheepdog guides them through more of the many challenges of growing up. The new Seamus the Sheltie to the Rescue is the third book in the National award-winning “Seamus the Sheltie” series.

If you sometimes have trouble finding the right words to comfort your children when they encounter difficult or frightening issues, or feel unsure of how to share with your children your family's values, or feel ill prepared to explain difficult or moral situations – then the Seamus the Sheltie series of children’s books were written for you.

It’s not easy being a kid. There are lots of things to know and learn, and some of them are scary. It’s not easy being a parent, either. Sometimes it’s hard to find the right words to explain a situation, share our values, or comfort our kids. This award-winning book helps both parents and children to talk about important subjects with the assistance of an unusual guide – a Shetland sheepdog named Seamus.

In Seamus the Sheltie to the Rescue, the lovable sheepdog both learns and teaches valuable lessons about trust, compassion, being born different and kindness. But wisely, the book doesn’t preach.  Kids can identify with Seamus’ feelings – his exhilaration at playing in the snow, his compassion when confronted by a lost or injured animal, or his fear of going to (shudder) the vet. This author does not flinch when it comes to dealing with difficult issues such as animal cruelty, adoption, loss of family members, how to handle bullies, fear of doctors, the true meaning of Christmas, the value of animal rescue shelters, and the joy of experiencing the simple things in life like watching the clouds and playing in the snow.

Through the adventures of Seamus, Mr. Beverly is able, not only to capture the reader, but also build an atmosphere of safety where he can introduce tough subjects. While Seamus has the answers, Mr. Beverly compassionately and wisely also enlightens readers about the value that pets add to our lives in every day situations as well as unforeseeable challenges.

A discussion guide at the back of the book makes it easier for parents to introduce their own discussions based on the stories.

Implementing his Master's level training as a child psychologist with more than 45 years of experience, the award-winning author cleverly creates a language for Seamus, a real dog, to help address topics that parents often times find difficult to discuss with their children. Small children will relate to Seamus’ simple way of speaking. James based the dog’s language on canine physiology (dogs can’t say the “th” sound, for instance, because their tongues get in the way) and a vocabulary based on the 85 human words that Seamus understands. Additionally, the imagination of the well-loved dog has a distinctive flavor of humor that only Seamus could conjure up, which proves popular with both children and adults alike, while inspiring a readily available and easy approach to discuss sticky situations in today's society.

The innocence and gentleness of Seamus teach valuable life lessons to young children in a fun way. Humor is a key ingredient, and a happy ending to each story underscores the important moral or basic value relevant to each story in this book, setting the stage for wonderful discussions with a child. After the completion of a chapter, a quick flip to the appendix provides a great place to start to discuss the story with children. Reading and discussing these stories with your child will help form wonderful memories that will last a lifetime.

Heartwarming and educational, readers agree that the Seamus the Sheltie books are enjoyable and fun for the entire family. Parents who want to have meaningful discussions with their children about family values in a fun and entertaining way should consider this book. Please visit www.seamusthesheltie.com for more details.

Today, Seamus can be found wagging his tail more frequently as he has been presented with his very own website where children can join his fan club, download free posters, a free Seamus coloring book, and listen to a three minute reading from the new book by his amazing owner. A short video of the book is also available along with a free lesson on Seamus-Speak. By mid-summer, the Seamus series will be available in the Apple IBook store.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Beverly was born in Seco, a small historical coal mining town in eastern Kentucky. He is an only child. His family moved from Kentucky to Detroit when he was five years old. He grew up in Detroit, graduating from Cass Technical High School and receiving his Bachelor of Science degree from Wayne State University, he received a Master of Arts degree in Clinical Child Psychology from the University of Waterloo in Waterloo Ontario, Canada. Mr. Beverly was then invited by Dr. John Basmajian, the Dean of the Medical School at Queen’s University, to join his research team, which he spent the next two years enrolled in the Medical School at Queen’s University in Kingston Ontario where he was involved in research projects involving physically handicapped children.

Since then Mr. Beverly has worked in the field of mental health as a therapist and administrator in nine states for over thirty five years and has presented at a number of national and state conferences. He has been nominated for a variety of state and regional awards for innovative clinical programming and was among the first to develop and implement a multi-disciplinary battered women’s facility that was operated by a community mental health center. His innovative domestic intervention police training program that was designed to serve community based law enforcement agencies was presented by request to the Los Angeles Police Department.

During his many years of service, Mr. Beverly worked directly with a wide variety of distressed children and their families in a variety of institutional and community settings. During this time, he became acutely aware of the poor communication that existed in many of the families, which led to a lack of meaningful family values being instilled in the children. Most of these families were motivated to teach their children— but lacked the necessary basic materials, knowledge and skills to be successful. It was apparent to him that there were very little written or easily accessible materials available for parents and children to assist in these tasks. These experiences laid the foundation for a series of books for children and their parents that was designed specifically to fill these values and communication gaps in a pleasant, fun, and non-threatening manner.

Following the success of his nationally award-winning books, The Adventures of Seamus the Sheltie, and More Tales of Seamus the Sheltie, Mr. Beverly received many requests from parents asking if he would please write additional stories for them that would deal with some specific and difficult topics that they were having problems with trying to discuss them with their child. These requests led him to the publication of his current book. Please visit www.seamusthesheltie.com for more details.

The Seamus the Sheltie books can be purchased at:
www.seamusthesheltie.com
All major on-line bookstores

Now available as an IBook in the Apple Book Store

Contact James Beverly via www.seamusthesheltie.com

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