Because You Are Here (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780645170702)

Released in April 2021 and Winner of the internationally renowned Outstanding Children's Illustrated Fiction category for the 2021 Independent Author Network (IAN) Book of the Year Awards, 'Because You Are Here' is a "visually engaging, heartening work about human existence" - Kirkus Reviews.

Have you ever wondered what you are doing here or why certain things have happened to you? Perhaps you are here to light a path through darkness, speak up for those who do not have a voice, or create a more kind & just world? Despite what others may say: You Matter. You are Important. And your energy on this earth- right now- is exactly what the world needs, for we will never again know anyone like YOU.

"Because You Are Here" is the first book from Dr. Yasmin Salleh, an Australian children's doctor who saw a need for supportive literature for kids growing up in our confusing and often times austere world, where they will face ignorance, intolerance, and prejudice and have to make sense of why sometimes bad things happen to good people. Join our story's hero, the Slow Loris, as we journey together through vibrant and mysterious lands to meet magical and unique creatures, brought to life by debut Canadian illustrator, Amanda Merrifield.

Imagine living in a world where from a very young age children believed & were taught that they had a purpose, that their energy and being mattered, and that they had unique gifts that only they possessed to give to the world? When everyone lives Lit Up, the world begins to change...