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Rajah And The Big Blue Ball - Mosetta Penick Phillips-Cermack
Rajah And The Big Blue
Ball
Mosetta Penick
Phillips-Cermak
ISBN: 9780981777740
PM Moon Publishers
Reviewed By Latonya
Franklin
Official Apex Reviews
Rating: 
Rajah is a big black dog
who enjoys a comfortable living in the spacious house and sprawling yard that
he shares with his owner and other furry friends. Every day, he happily
explores the grounds, checking out his favorite places and making sure that
everything is as it should be, and each new day fills him with the same sense
of joy and peace as he rollicks around without a care in the world.
One day, though, something
strange happens: as Rajah is visiting his favorite tree, a pinecone suddenly
drops onto his head. Stunned, Rajah looks up, only to catch a fleeting glimpse
of what appears to be a big blue ball high up in the tree, lingering
momentarily before vanishing from sight. Though he’s slightly confused by
what’s transpired, Rajah nonetheless visits the tree again the next day – and,
sure enough, another pinecone whacks him on the head, just like before.
Refusing to be thrown for
a loop by the strange turn of events, Rajah launches a cautious investigation
into the suspicious matters, ultimately discovering that it has less to do with
magic and mystery and more to do with his own personal behavioral patterns…
Rajah And The Big Blue
Ball is a delightful, entertaining read. Skillfully penned for a younger
audience, it possesses a special appeal for older readers as well, as it
presents an enlightening commentary on the trappings of curiosity, with which
we are all familiar on some level. Coupled with colorful, vivid pictures and
attention-grabbing visual imagery, author Mosetta Phillips-Cermak’s amusing
tale moves along at an enjoyable pace, making it perfect for bedtime readings
and campfire gatherings worldwide. A recommended literary treat.
Official Apex Reviews Interview: Dr. Mosetta Penick Phillips-Cermak (Rajah And The Big Blue Ball)
Apex Reviews: Dr. Penick Phillips-Cermak, thanks for joining us for this interview. We're looking forward to learning more about your writings and other efforts.
Apex Reviews: Dr. Penick Phillips-Cermak, thanks for joining us for this interview. We're looking forward to learning more about your writings and other efforts.
Dr. Mosetta: Thank you for having me for this interview.
AR: What was your inspiration for crafting this enjoyable and entertaining story?
Dr.
Mosetta: All of my life I have watched animals. As a child, I used to
look into my dogs' eyes, and try to imagine just what they were
thinking. Our protagonist, Rajah, is my real dog, Rajah Le Beau. He
really does love running around our backyard. He chases the squirrels,
and sniffs the air. Rajah has such a wonderful personality. He tries
very hard to communicate with me.
As
I have mentioned in my blog, I dedicated this story to one of my
favorite second grade classes. It was for these children that I wrote
"Rajah and the Big Blue Ball". The book evolved from their "Tell Me a
Story" time.
One of
my students had watched as his cousins was shot in the head by a
drive-by shooter. The child was so traumatized by the sight of blood
and neural material splattered all over him, that he did not speak for
six months. But when he did, he asked me to tell him a story.
And the story I told was "Rajah and the Big Blue Ball".
AR: We noticed that you currently own a couple of Labrador retrievers...are Rajah's adventures based at all on the exploits of your dogs?
And the story I told was "Rajah and the Big Blue Ball".
AR: We noticed that you currently own a couple of Labrador retrievers...are Rajah's adventures based at all on the exploits of your dogs?
Dr.
Mosetta: Yes, they are. Actually, all the Rajah stories are based on
the dogs that I have adopted over the last fifty (50) years or so.
Rajah and the Big Blue Ball is based on a real incident. A pair of Blue Jays moved into one of the trees in our yard. I watched as they built a nest. The male Blue Jay began to dive-bomb my dog whenever I let him outside. The female would drop branches and pinecones on his head. I felt as if a team of bullies had taken over my yard. As I watched the birds, the story began to take shape. This is a relevant topic about bullying, and making friendships.
AR: As our reviewer mentioned, the pictures and other imagery featured in the book are very striking and eye-catching. Who created them?
Dr.
Mosetta: All the photograph plus the graphic of the fish were licensed
through Dreamstime, LLC. The photo that became the Cover of Rajah and the Big Blue Ball was taken by Joshua Gagnon.
AR: You began to write at the tender age of ten. Has writing always been in your blood?
AR: You began to write at the tender age of ten. Has writing always been in your blood?
Dr.
Mosetta: I feel that is so. I first published at the age of ten (10).
I believe that writing was a natural outgrowth of my love for the
written word.
I have been blessed to come from an extraordinary family. My mother read to me every night from the day I was born. I watched her do the same with my brother. She was very much ahead of her time. She believed that infants were aware of their surroundings, and that they could learn and understand language very early. Of course her ideas on parenting have been validated over the years.
My
grandmother was a teacher. In those days, she was forced to resign
from teaching Public School from the time that she married, around
1914, until my grandfather died, about 1947. So, she taught her own
children, and subsequently her grandchildren.
She told me a story everyday of my life. Somewhere around the age of four (4), according to my grandmother, I started to make up stories and tell them to her. Then, I began to put on plays and puppet shows in the back yard. And, finally, I started to write stories.
AR: You
seem to have a special knack for crafting stories geared towards
children and young adults. What is it that draws you to that particular
genre?
Dr.
Mosetta: Thank you for that kind remark. I guess I never grew up in
some ways. When I was a child I wanted to be "Peter Pan." I
have always felt a connection to children and to animals. When I look
at a little child or at an animal, I truly believe that I know what
s/he is thinking. Of course, with my background in psychotherapy, I am
a keen observer and a student of behavior. I actually wanted to be a
Veterinarian, but it was almost impossible for a women to get into
veterinarian medicine in my day.
AR: Who have been some of your chief writing influences?
Dr.
Mosetta: First, I would say the Bible. The metaphors are outstanding
and very moving, and the imagery is incredible. Next, I would have to
say Greek mythology. I loved the stories of Homer, even when I was
very young.
As a child, our library had a rule that you had to be 12 years old to get an adult library card. They needed to waive that rule for me. By the time I was eight and one-half, I had read all the books in the children's section of our branch of the Cleveland Public Library. The newspaper wrote a story about me. It was the first time I was in the newspaper.
Once I received my adult library card, the world of literature opened up for me. My journey into literature was eclectic. So, of course I was influenced by Shakespeare and Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet. My great aunt had left the United States to study fashion in Paris during the 1920's and she brought back copies of Candide and La Princesse de Babylone with her. An advanced education in Fashion was not available to women of color in the United States at that time).
I
loved to read anything...from the breakfast cereal boxes to the New
York Times. I think that the first grown-up, mainstream, book that I
ever read was Sinuhe the Egyptian by Mika Waltari, (the English translation by Naomi Walford), and then Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk.
I
most definitely read the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Ralph
Ellison, Lorraine Hansberry, Dorothy West, Langston Hughes, Alexander
Dumas, Henry James, L. Frank Baum, Edgar Rice Burroughs, William
Makepeace Thackeray, and the Grimm fairy tales. I could go on and on
with such writers as Edward Gorey, F.Scott
Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, Dr Seuss, Margaret
Mitchell, Pearl Buck, Aldous Huxley, Virginia Woolf, George Orwell, and
John Dos Passos. Somewhere in my youth I read T.S. Eliot, C. S. Lewis,
Jules Vern, and H.G. Wells. I think Vern and Wells helped me develop a
love for science fiction.
I also enjoyed reading plays, and I spent a great deal of time at the Karamu Theater, in my pre-teen and early teen years, where I had a very small part in Seventeen by Booth Tarkington. I think that in my world, both plays and books, were equally important to developing my imagination. But, I am not a playwright by any stretch of the aforementioned imagination.
AR: Please share more with us about your publisher, PM Moon Publishers.
Dr.
Mosetta: PM Moon Publishers, LLC is an unconventional and wonderful
group. They started a publishing house that would eliminate those
areas that they felt were inhibitive to new writers, while maintaining
the highest quality of writing that they could.
For example, they try to respond to each new submissions in a very reasonable amount of time. They have this sort of family atmosphere, where they encourage the older authors to mentor the newer ones.
AR: Please share more with our readers about your other writings.
Dr.
Mosetta: I am under contract to PM Moon Publishers, LLC for 5 more
Rajah books. In addition they have options on two of my young adult
books. I have a middle grade chapter book that I wrote 8 years ago
that I am also editing.
AR: In addition to being an author, you're a teacher as well. Please share more with us about your efforts in that field.
Dr.
Mosetta: The foundation of this writer's philosophy of teaching is
predicated on one simple belief, which is that all children can learn.
I believe in inspired teaching. I believe in helping children to love
to learn, just for the sake of learning.
Good teaching is primarily based on the premise that every student can learn, show concern for one another, and choose to act responsibly in the classroom. From this concept springs all other aspects pertaining to this philosophy. A secondary theorem is that all learning springs from a desire to develop understanding of the world, and it is the responsibility of the teacher to nurture this desire within her/his charges.
And, I am a definite believer in discipline. If students develop discipline, they learn persistence, the ability to see a matter through to its conclusion.
It is particularly difficult these days. Instead, our children are being taught a demand for instant gratification, instead of the discipline of patience. Many parents are too busy in an attempt to support their children and provide for their physical need that they do not have the time or energy to connect with the child's emotional needs.
The purpose of teaching is to provide a positive environment where all students can learn and the purpose of my writing is to construct a positive universe for the children who read my books. When I write for my audience it is another way of imparting information and affecting a child's life.
As a writer I create a world where children can reach out and test the limits of their imagination in safety.
AR: How can people learn more about you and your ongoing efforts?
Dr. Mosetta: I would love to have people follow my blog at http://www.docmosetta.blogspot.com.
I think that my blog is a little different. I only write when someone
or some event spurs me on...forces me to write, so to speak, because I
have something that must be said.
I am also posting at http://hubpages.com/profile/MaiaCer.
AR: How can they contact you directly?
Dr.
Mosetta: I invite your readers to connect with me on Facebook or
Twitter. My Facebook and Twitter addresses are as follows:
Rajah also has his own facebook fan page at:
His twitter page is http://twitter.com/rajahlebeau
AR: Any final thoughts you'd like to share with our readers?
Dr. Mosetta: I want to thank you for this opportunity to discuss my personal philosophy and my latest book, Rajah and the Big Blue Ball.
One of my special causes is the Cleveland Animal Protective League.
$1.00 of every purchase of Rajah and the Big Blue Ball
goes to the Cleveland APL. I am currently working to raise money to
sponsor a cage. Sponsorship is $1500 per year. This would guarantee a
puppy or older dog a cage of his/her own until he or she is adopted.
In addition, I encourage people to buy one of my books and donate it to an inner city school or library.
People have to buy books and share them with children. It hurts my heart when I hear someone say that a book is "too expensive". Yet, many of the same people spend one hundred and fifty dollars for a pair of tennis shoes, or $300 for a gaming console.
We need to re-think our values in order to save our children.
AR: Thanks again, Dr. Penick Phillips-Cermak, and the best of continued success to you in all your endeavors!