TheMommyBlog

A little while ago, I received a really very unique children’s book in the mail from Nick Loukoumi (who, incidentally, published friend Beth Feldman and Yvette Manessis Corporon’s Peeing in Peace!) of course I ripped open the package and looked through everything. I say, “Looked through everything” because this is not just a book, it’s also a narrated story with music, featuring an amazing cast of performers.

The book is called “Growing up with Loukumi” and teaches children that if they believe in themselves, their dreams will come true:

Loukoumi doesn’t know what she wants to be when she grows up. In Growing Up With Loukoumi, her friends Gus the bear, Fistiki the cat, Dean the dog and Marika the monkey, each help Loukoumi realize that if she looks inside her heart, she can be anything, because if you believe in yourself, your dreams will come true! Visit the website to see character sketches, reviews, and quotes from performers.Book includes a CD where Growing Up With Loukoumi is narrated by Grammy winner Gloria Gaynor and the original Loukoumi book is narrated by Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis, both featuring the character voices of:

• CBS National Correspondent Alexis Christoforous as Loukoumi
• American Idol’s Constantine Maroulis as Gus the bear
• Grammy Winner Gloria Gaynor as Fistiki the cat
• Guiding Light star Frank Dicopoulos as Dean the dog, and
• Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis as Marika the monkey
• CD also includes the orginal song “Believe” performed by Gloria Gaynor

Even more exciting, this Monday the 19th, the book will be featured on the Martha Stewart Show, and Olympia Dukakis who (among others) narrates the book will be a guest on the show!