New Children's Book "Roody Kangaroo Moves Forward" Debuts with Illustrations by Eighth-Grade Student Riviera ISD Student's Illustrations Selected by Best-Selling Author

Portland, Maine (June 9, 2022)-John Brubaker, best-selling, award-winning Maine author is pleased to announce the launch of his new children's book, "Roody Kangaroo Moves Forward." Now available for purchase, the book features illustrations by Piper Colston, an eighth-grade student at Riviera ISD in Riviera, Texas.

Brubaker was introduced to Colston by Rhonda Yaklin, a teacher at Riviera ISD, who recognized the young artist's skill. Being not far removed from the target audience's age (grades K-6), Colston saw the story through the readers' lens, making her uniquely qualified to bring fresh perspectives and new ideas to the project.

"Piper is a delightful young woman and an extremely talented artist," says Brubaker. "Her lively and colorful illustrations made Roody Kangaroo come to life and help children connect to a character they can relate to."

According to the Child Mind Institute, "millions of children - as many as 1 in 5 - struggle with mental health or learning challenges. 70% of U.S. counties do not have a single child and adolescent psychiatrist." With this in mind, Brubaker wrote "Roody Kangaroo Moves Forward" to provide teachers and parents with a resource to teach their children about the importance of resilience and mindset, and to do it in a way that they can relate to and understand at a young age.

"Once I began openly speaking and writing about my bouts of depression and anxiety, I had readers and fans come out of the woodwork thanking me for publicly discussing this," says Brubaker. "They shared with me their own mental health challenges and especially the mental health challenges their kids have had recently during the pandemic. This was the genesis of Roody Kangaroo."

"This book is a must-have resource for every elementary classroom," says Valerie Rennie, Kindergarten teacher at Richland Creek Elementary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. "Roody provides an example of how to persevere through life's challenges. This story should be an essential part of every teacher's character trait library."

For more information about John or to purchase visit www.CUCOroody.com. A percentage of all sales will be donated to mental health nonprofits in the U.S.

About the Author
John Brubaker is a best-selling author and professional speaker. He founded and leads multiple companies; most notably Chin Up Chest Out® Apparel Co. which is a lifestyle brand that donates a percentage of all sales to mental health non-profits. He is also the founder of CUCOradio.com, a radio station playing "Music For Your Mindset" with no commercials and no negativity.

After publishing 17 business books, John Brubaker published his first children's book, "Roody Kangaroo Moves Forward." This pivot in Brubaker's writing from business books to a children's book about resilience is a direct result of his personal journey dealing with depression and anxiety.

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Media Contact
John Brubaker
207-576-9853
john@coachbru.com
371 Tuttle Rd.
Cumberland, ME 04021

John Brubaker is constantly exploring new ideas, while never forgetting what he does best. It's an approach that has propelled him to the top of his profession as an author and speaker. Among his 15 books, Brubaker has 2 award-winning books and one international best-seller to his credit.
His book Seeds of Success won Business Book of The Year at the 2013 Hollywood Book Festival and 2013 Southern California Book Festival. In 2016 Seeds of Success was adapted to a screen play for a Hollywood major motion picture. Additionally, Brubaker's book The Coach Approach was recognized at the 2012 New England Book Festival.

2017 was a storybook year for Coach Bru, his book Stadium Status earned Amazon #1 International Best-Seller status and he followed that up with a 50 date speaking tour that reached two dozen states from the east coast to the west coast. Brubaker was keynote speaking at national conventions, Major League Baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates spring training and at dozens of college athletic departments and corporations.

While some speakers and authors might see this as a cue to hit cruise control, for this proud husband and father of two, it's only added fuel to his fire to deliver more for his audiences and expand his creative vision. That's precisely what he's done with Beyond Stadium Status, the sequel to his international best-seller.

If you've watched Brubaker's career carefully the past two years, you'll see there's been a lot more going on.

"In 2019 I got hit with a string of physical injuries and that took a toll on my mental health. I spent much of 2019 in physical therapy and psychotherapy. My therapist encouraged me to journal and document the strategies I created to climb out of depression. After regaining my physical and mental health, a pandemic hit the globe and many people's mental health began to suffer due to the isolation. As a result, I felt called to share that journal with the world so I decided to publish it as a daily reader titled Move Forward."

Coach Bru's creative vision set the stage for the creation of his own clothing brand, Chin Up Chest Out apparel in 2020. Chin Up Chest Out, Move Forward is his mindset and mantra in dealing with adversity. No matter what you're going through, keep your chin up, your chest out and move forward. It's a seamless extension of Brubaker's brand message- leadership and the power of mindset. The brand's message and cause have resonated deeply with the public. In its first year Chin Up Chest Out built a customer base in 27 states and 3 countries and 10% of all sales are donated to mental health charities.

At its core, speaking and writing are about storytelling. John Brubaker is a great communicator because he's a great storyteller. Beyond Stadium Status and Chin Up Chest Out open a new chapter in his person narrative, one that shows that as the business world continues to change, Brubaker will be at the forefront.

"When people read my new books and hear me speak, they will will hear exactly who I am," he says. "In my industry, it's easy to get lost in thinking you should do what everyone else is doing because it's safe and should have commercial appeal. But the real magic happens when you create something your audience loves and you really love it too."

And that, as Coach Bru calls it, is going Beyond Stadium Status.

This release was published on openPR.