New book ‘I Move A Lot And That’s Okay’ aims to help military kids cope with change
“I Move A Lot And That’s Okay” is the first in a line of books by author Shermaine Perry-Knights geared especially for military kids.
This is sponsored content paid for by the author of this book.
As we get ready to kick off the Month of the Military Child in April, there is a new book for military kids that should be on your radar.
“I Move A Lot And That’s Okay” is the story of a military brat, Grace, who goes on an adventure with her family’s permanent change of station orders from Fort Benning, Georgia, to Naples, Italy.
Young readers will join Grace as the family learns of its PCS orders, as she has to say goodbye to her friends at school, and as some of her things get lost and broken along the way – and will see how she deals with it all.
They’ll also learn some military jargon and even some phrases in Italian.
“I Move A Lot And That’s Okay” is the first in a line of books geared especially for military kids by author Shermaine Perry-Knights. A second book, “I Move A Lot And That’s Okay: Axel’s Story,” is the same story as Grace’s, but with a boy main character, and a mom service member with Dad the supportive spouse at home.
“My hope is these books become a conversation tool with your kids before you PCS, validating their experiences,” Perry-Knights told The Spouse Angle in March.
Books can be purchased online on Amazon or amazinglyshermaine.com. They’re geared for kids ages 7 to 10.
The Spouse Angle hopped on the phone for a Q&A with Perry-Knights to learn more about “I Move A Lot And That’s Okay” and her journey as a military kid.
Author Shermaine Perry-Knights wanted to create a series of books to help military kids talk about their emotions and learn to cope with change.
The Spouse Angle: I know you were a military brat. Did you base Grace off yourself?
Perry-Knights: Grace is my story.
I’ve seen a lot of literature for military children, but I haven’t seen as much from the military child’s perspective. Not only PCSing, but going to a new school – what does that feel like?
You’ll get to see the highs and lows of Grace’s emotions. She is leaving her friends and starts to forget people. If you move enough that is what happens.
A lot of the illustrations are based of my memories and even my photos. I had a picture of the Naples airport and the foothills of Italy that we used. And a picture of the elementary school at the time; Grace also goes to Naples Elementary School.
In the book you see a lot of unconventional activities. For example, Grace was jumping on bubble wrap. One year I was in three schools in two different countries with a lot of instability. We jumped on bubble wrap at home a lot because there was a lot of bubble wrap around and it made us happy. It is the idea of parents finding simple moments and inexpensive activities to help kids connect with family members.
The Spouse Angle: How did your background qualify you to write this book?
Perry-Knights: I have been certified as a trainer and I teach professional development courses. I once taught kids. Then I taught college level for seven years.
From all that I realized every emotion you experience, every social interaction, goes back to training. So I said, ‘How do I take what I’m learning in the classroom and make it bite-size for kids?’
Especially during the pandemic, kids are missing social interaction. Things are just not OK. Let’s let that be a teaching tool to learn about their emotions.
The resilience I had to learn as a kid I wanted to share that with others. That evolved into writing. Nowhere has been home, but I make the best of an environment. I talk about that in this book as well: “It’s my job to make the best where I am to make it easier for my dad.”
I also worked with a few organizational psychologists on the book.
The Spouse Angle: What did your dad do in the military?
Perry-Knights: My dad was Air Force as information technology. He was TDY more times than not. He was gone almost nine months of every year. He experienced the highs and lows of the hardness aspect of constantly being gone from the family – then struggling to find the place in the family when together. The norm was elsewhere.
You feel the emotion in the moment and find a way to move forward.
The themes in this book become an opportunity to talk about the social and emotional aspects kids are going through today – not just in the military, but for any child who is experiencing rapid change and relocation. I hope that, while we are talking to military families now, we can talk to kids who are transient or homeless. Ultimately I would love to pair this book with school curriculums and social-emotional learning curriculums.
The Spouse Angle: What is your goal for this series?
Perry-Knights: My goal is 30 books or more. There already are two children’s books that are published and two more in the works. I also have five coloring books that are out.
I love the feedback I am getting from kids. For example, that they are getting ready to move and they really liked this book. Or that they felt sad for this character and wish they had another friend. When they make that connection, it makes them feel good.
It’s a global pandemic and we’re all frustrated adults. I would really love more conversations about how this affects children. I would love us to have more conversations in general about what are we doing to help kids during this time period – it’s tough.