Chocolate Milk, Review and Author Interview

As a children’s book author that has published three children’s books, I love supporting other authors that also have the same dream to publish their own children’s books. Chocolate Milk written by Alexandria Rizik and illustrated by Joey A Dimaguila is a sweet children’s book with a valuable lesson. The story begins with the scene of a mother cow who had just given birth to three baby calves. The names of the three calves are Penelope, Emerald and Star. They each look similar except Star who has a spot on her that perfectly resembled the shape of a star. When Mr. Jones, the farmer begins to milk the cows, both Penelope and Emerald produce perfect white milk. When Mr. Jones milks Star, he realizes the milk is brown. The two calves Penelope and Emerald tease Star about her discolored milk, which is hurtful to her. The farmer immediately contacts the local vet who doesn’t know what to think of the milk until he decides to taste it. It is chocolate milk and delicious! Once people hear about Star’s delicious chocolate milk, customers come from all over the area to purchase the milk. Star becomes quite famous for her milk and also very proud of being unique!

When reading the bio about the author, I became interested in Alexandria’s background as a filmmaker. I wanted to include an interview in the review so you can learn more about her unique short films, which are creative and interesting. To learn more about Alexandria visit her website here. Thank you Alexandria!

1. What inspired you to write Chocolate Milk?

I originally wrote Chocolate Milk as a class assignment in which we were to write a fable that had a moral to the ending. Simultaneously, I was also running an anti-bullying campaign, so I wanted the theme of the story to reflect that.

2. Tell me about your career as a filmmaker.

So, I began writing screenplays when I was 17, when a family friend of mine let me read a script she’d written. Her story was inspired by a personal trauma she experienced as a teenager. At the same time that I’d read this, I was going through my first real heartbreak and decided to channel that into my first script. It wasn’t until a few years later when I was twenty-two that I wrote and produced my first short film, “Contentment” (now on Amazon Prime!!!!). This is a short that I based off of a poem I wrote and also the first time I directed! It was kind of by accident, a friend of mine was originally set to direct the film but had to back out last minute so I took on the task and fell in love. It was a challenge as I was also acting, but such a great experience. Since then, I’ve written and directed two other award-winning short films.

3. What would you like children to learn from your story?

I want kids to learn to embrace the qualities that make them different and even more importantly, I want them to learn that you can’t judge a cow by the color of her milk! Everyone is different and that is what makes this world so special.

4. Can you tell me more about your writing?

I’m ALWAYS writing. I probably have at least a dozen screenplays I’m currently working on. I’ll be shooting my first feature film this year, titled “Cut”, as well as another short, titled “Synchronicity”. My first novel, “21 Questions”, will be out in 2019, and I’ll hopefully have a sequel to “Chocolate Milk” soon!!!!

Chocolate Milk

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