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⭑ Mrs. McClain ⭑

@mrs.mcclainsbrains

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We LOVED reading this advanced copy to celebrate Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month! My class thought Kuro was the CUTEST 🐈‍⬛ This English and Spanish bilingual title officially releases on October 13…so mark your calendars! It’s perfect for ages 3-7 and teaches about cultural acceptance and pride 🥰

#arc #bilingualpicturebooks #bilingualbooks #newpicturebook by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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5 days ago

At 32, I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. 👇🏽

And somewhere in the middle of processing what that meant for my life and for the family I might never get to have, I found myself asking a question I couldn’t shake.

What do I want to leave behind while I’m still here?

That question led me to write a bilingual children’s book about a cat named Kuro who visits his Cuban family in Miami, filled with the food, the music, the traditions, the kind of home I grew up in.

Growing up, I never once saw my family in the pages of a book. Not the Sunday dinners, the family game nights, the love that fills a home when every generation is crammed into the same room.

I don’t want the next generation of Latino kids to grow up also never seeing themselves in the stories they read.

That’s the whole reason Kuro Libros exists, and it’s the mark I want to leave on this world while I’m still here.

If you want to follow along, I’d love to have you here. 🫶🏽 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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2 months ago

If you know a school, a library, a bookstore, a community center, a teacher or a librarian who works with Latino kids and families, drop it in the comments below!

Every single suggestion helps and if you made it this far, just know I’m so grateful for you! 🫶🏽 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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3 months ago

IT’S HERE 🎉

We’re excited to reveal the cover of our very first book, Mi Familia Cubano Con Kuro illustrated by @somebodyelsa 🖍️

Join Kuro, a curious little black cat, as he invites children to explore his Cuban and Salvadoran roots, traditions, and family customs. Visit Kuro’s home to enjoy delicious pupusas and lechón, listen to the sounds of the tres cubano, dance salsa with Abuela Cristina, and gather around for stories from Grandma and Grandpa about growing up in Cuba and El Salvador.

A heartfelt celebration of family, culture, music, food, and heritage for children and families alike. by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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5 months ago

So… how can you actually support this little book and the mission behind it? 🥹👇

The biggest way is to preorder your copy of Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro.

Every preorder helps me get this bilingual children’s book into more homes, classrooms, libraries, and little hands.

But you absolutely do NOT have to buy a book to help.

Share this post with a parent raising bilingual kids.

Send it to a teacher or librarian.

Tag someone who cares about Cuban culture, representation, or preserving the stories we grew up with.

My dream is to see this little book passed from parent to child, abuelo to grandchild, and classroom to classroom.

And every preorder, share, comment, and person you tell helps me get it one step further. 🤍

Preorder your copy via my link in bio or share this with one person who would love to be part of this mission. 🥰 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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2 days ago

A bilingual book teaches your child SO much more than a few Spanish words. 🇨🇺📚

And that’s exactly why I knew Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro needed to be written in both English and Spanish.

Yes, bilingual books can introduce new words and help kids become more comfortable seeing and hearing another language.
But they can also help a child recognize the words they hear at their abuela’s house.

They can help them understand more of the conversations happening around the dinner table.

They can give parents and grandparents a story they can read together, even if one person is more comfortable in English and another is more comfortable in Spanish.

And maybe most importantly, they show our niños and niñas that Spanish isn’t just something they learn in school.

It’s part of their familia.

Their stories.

Their culture.

That’s what I wanted Kuro to give families.

A fun little story you can read together now, while quietly preserving pieces of your culture that I hope your kids carry with them for a very, very long time. 🤍

Preorder your copy of Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro through the link in my bio and bring a little more español into storytime. 🇨🇺📚 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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4 days ago

I used to be so embarrassed to speak Spanish growing up.. ⬇️

I was the kid who understood what my parents were saying in Spanish… and answered them right back in English.

For the longest time, I could understand way more Spanish than I ever felt comfortable speaking...

I think when I was younger, I didn’t appreciate what a gift it was to grow up around the language.

I was embarrassed that I couldn't pronounce everything right... speaking Spanish in front of my english friends and feeling different... and just not feeling confident in the language made me hide that part of my identity.

It wasn’t until I got older that I started speaking it more and realized how badly I wanted to hold onto that part of my culture.

That’s actually one of the reasons making Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro bilingual was so important to me. 🇨🇺

I wanted kids to be introduced to Spanish in a way that doesn’t feel like homework or like they’re being forced to memorize a bunch of words.

They’re following Kuro, meeting his familia, seeing the pictures, reading the story, and naturally learning Spanish along the way.

Because sometimes 5 little words inside a story they love can be the beginning of feeling more comfortable with a language that connects them to their familia and culture.

And maybe one day they’ll appreciate knowing those words a whole lot more than little Yvette did. 😂

Preorder your copy of Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro through the link in my bio and start reading, learning, and celebrating nuestra cultura together. 🇨🇺 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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6 days ago

If you’re looking for more books by Hispanic authors to add to your child’s bookshelf, SAVE this list. ❤️

And I might be a little biased about the last one because... I wrote it. 😂

I shared 3 of my favorites in this video, but I think what I love most about books like these is that they give kids a chance to see cultures, families, foods, words, and traditions that might look like their own.

And for kids who don’t come from a Hispanic family, they get to experience a world outside of theirs.

That’s a huge part of why I wrote Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro.

I wanted to create a bilingual children’s book that made Cuban culture feel FUN to learn about while introducing kids to Spanish words, family traditions, and all the little things that make our culture special.

Because these are the kinds of books I wish I had more of growing up.

And now I get to add mine to the shelf. 🥹❤️

**Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro is available for preorder now**, and I have a very big goal of getting this little book onto the New York Times bestseller list.

So if you want to support that dream, preorder a copy for your family or send this to a teacher, school, parent, or abuela who needs this book on their shelf, it would mean the world to me. 🥹 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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9 days ago

As a kid, I didn't realize how special those little things are because they’re simply my everyday life.

Then as I got older I realized they’re part of my story. 🫶

But now I want to know! What’s something about your culture or upbringing that you appreciate WAY more now that you’re older? Tell me in the comments because I would genuinely love to hear yours!!

P.S. If you’re new here, hi! I’m Yvette, a children’s book author on a mission to share more Cuban culture, family stories, and Spanish with the next generation through my bilingual children’s book, Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro. And yes, I have a very big dream of seeing this little book on the New York Times bestseller list one day. 🥹

If you want to help me get it there, you can preorder your copy or share the book with a family, teacher, or school that would love to bring more Hispanic representation into storytime. ❤️ by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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11 days ago

My hope for this book ⬇️

I'm Cuban on my dad's side, Salvadoran on my mom's, and I grew up in a house where both lived side by side.

Cuban music playing while my Salvadoran mom cooked. Two cultures, one kitchen, all of it home. 🥹

But when I looked for books that reflected any of that, they weren't there.

Kids growing up between cultures rarely get to see themselves on the page.

So I made one.

Mi Familia Cubana con Kuro is a bilingual children's book built from the culture, the traditions, and the family memories that shaped me.

It's the story of a little black cat who travels from Amsterdam to Miami and finds his way into a Cuban family.. told in English and Spanish, the way I grew up.

My hope is simple.

That a niño or niña somewhere opens it and thinks, this is just like my family.

That they feel seen, and proud, and a little more at home in who they are.

Follow along as I bring my first book into the world.

For my culture, for my dad, and for every kid who deserves to find themselves in a story.

It's my DREAM to get this book into as many little hands as possible.

If you know a teacher, a librarian, or a parent raising kids between cultures who'd love a bilingual book like this, share this with them.

Every hand it reaches is a niño and niña who might finally feel seen. 🥹 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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13 days ago

A tiny peek inside. 🤍

Every page was created intentionally, from the Spanish and English woven throughout the story to the little pieces of Cuban culture, family, food, and history you’ll find along the way.

I can’t wait for niños and niñas to meet Kuro, but even more than that, I can’t wait to hear about the conversations these pages start between kids, parents, and grandparents.

Preorders are officially open through the link in my bio. If you know a family who would love to read this together, send this Reel their way. by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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16 days ago

I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer at 32 and I’m a bit embarrassed to admit…

Sometimes it took cancer for me to finally give myself permission to actually live my life.

Before my diagnosis, I was always thinking about what came next.

I was focused on building a successful career, making good money, saving for the future, and being responsible because I genuinely believed I had plenty of time to eventually do all the things I kept putting off.

Then at 32, I was forced to face the possibility that my future might look very different than I had always imagined.

As terrifying as that realization was, it completely changed the way I think about my time, my money, and the things I want to leave behind.

I still work my tech job, I still save money, and I still think about my future...

But I also spend money on experiences I would have talked myself out of before, and I finally started creating the children’s books I had dreamed about for years.

I’ve invested thousands of dollars of my own money into illustrations, publishing, and building Kuro Libros because creating stories that celebrate the culture and families I grew up around became something I didn’t want to keep saving for “someday.”

Maybe it shouldn’t have taken a stage 4 cancer diagnosis for me to realize there’s a difference between preparing for your life and actually living it, but I’m grateful I get to do something with that realization now.

And hopefully, one of the things I create gets to live on much longer than I do. 🤍

If you want to support my first bilingual children’s book and get your copy when preorders open, follow along here.

And if you know a family, teacher, or friend who would love to have a story celebrating Cuban culture on their bookshelf, sharing this with them would mean more to me than you know. 🥰 🥹 by @mrs.mcclainsbrains

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18 days ago