Sparking Peace Awareness Tour presented in partnership* with Herald Press and The Children’s Book Review.
Get ready for an extraordinary virtual book tour featuring Sparking Peace, the groundbreaking picture book that shows children how conflict can bloom into friendship and hope can grow from the most challenging moments.
Over the next month, we’ll explore how authors Teresa Kim Pecinovsky and Hannah Rose Martin, along with illustrator Gabhor Utomo, have crafted a gentle yet powerful story that helps families navigate difficult conversations about safety, healing, and peacemaking.
In a world where children face unprecedented challenges, Sparking Peace offers something precious: a roadmap for transformation that shows kids how gardens can grow where conflict once lived.
Don’t miss this chance to be part of a movement that’s reshaping how we talk to children about healing, hope, and the power of peace. Follow along as we discover together how small acts of kindness can forge the tools for a better tomorrow!
AMAZING GIVEAWAY ALERT: Throughout the tour, followers can enter daily to win one of TEN signed copies of Sparking Peace! Plus, one lucky grand prize winner will receive a signed copy AND a $50 Amazon gift card!
Mark your calendars—this is one book tour that will change hearts and minds AND could put this transformative book right in your hands.
Sparking Peace Virtual Tour Dates
| Wednesday, July 9, 2025 The Children’s Book Review Book Tour Kick-Off |
| Thursday, July 10, 2025 The Starlit Path Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Friday, July 11, 2025 Deliciously Savvy Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Monday, July 14, 2025 Country Mamas with Kids Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Tuesday, July 15, 2025 Crafty Moms Share Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Wednesday, July 16, 2025 icefairy’s Treasure Chest Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Thursday, July 17, 2025 Get Outside and Read Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Friday, July 18, 2025 Q&As with Deborah Kalb Author Interview with Teresa Kim Pecinovsky and Hannah Rose Martin |
| Monday, July 28, 2025 @nissa_the.bookworm Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Tuesday, July 29, 2025 All Done Monkey Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Wednesday, July 30, 2025 One More Exclamation Book Review of Sparking Peace |
| Thursday, July 31, 2025 Me Two Books Author Interview with Teresa Kim Pecinovsky and Hannah Rose Martin |
Sparking Peace Book Giveaway
Sparking Peace: Book GiveawayAbout the Book
Sparking Peace
Written by Teresa Kim Pecinovsky and Hannah Rose Martin
Illustrated by Gabhor Utomo
Ages 5+ | 40 Pages
Publisher: Herald Press | ISBN-13: 9781513813707
Publisher’s Book Summary: Broken into beautiful. A story of friendship and healing.
After breaking a neighbor’s window, a young child discovers friendship, transformation, and new beginnings in an unlikely story of peace. Gentle and moving, this poetic tale offers readers a hopeful path in the face of gun violence and despair, showing kids how peacemaking can turn conflict into friendship and new beginnings—and forge guns into garden tools.
Children grow up with lockdowns and gun violence as part of their reality. As parents, caregivers, and educators, how should we respond? Sparking Peace provides a springboard for those seeking to discuss gun violence and trauma with children in a safe way that highlights help rather than harm. This picture book helps children learn about conflict while also carefully addressing gun violence and peacemaking. It includes resources that equip parents and educators to talk about gun violence and trauma, using a story of a broken window to show kids how conflict can be transformed through acts of peace. Suggested reading for ages 5–9.
Buy the Book
About the Authors
Teresa Kim Pecinovsky holds a master of education from the University of Houston and a master of divinity from Vanderbilt Divinity School. She is an ordained minister through the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Rev. Teresa is the author of the children’s book Mother God and coauthor of The Peace Table. A healthcare chaplain, she lives with her family in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Hannah Rose Martin has had a passion for children’s education since she was in the 2nd grade, which led to a bachelor’s degree in education. She began teaching in an elementary school and is now a reading interventionist and Mennonite pastor in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She is a wife and mother of two energetic children who love books. She was inspired to teach and write because she saw a need for curriculum and books that engage children’s creativity and their role in the community around them. She hopes that Sparking Peace encourages parents and caregivers to have deeper conversations with children and together find that they are just one imaginative idea away from a transformed world.
About the Illustrator
Gabhor Utomo was born in Indonesia. He moved to California in 1997 to pursue a career as an artist. He received his degree from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco in spring 2003. Today, he works as a freelance illustrator and has illustrated numerous children’s books. His first children’s book, Kai’s Journey to Gold Mountain, tells the story of a young Chinese immigrant on Angel Island. Gabhor’s work has won awards and recognition from local and national art organizations. His painting of Senator Milton Marks is part of a permanent collection at the California State Building in downtown San Francisco. He also created posters for the Mountain Play, an outdoor theater in Marin County, California. He lives with his wife, Dina, and their twin daughters in Portland, Oregon.
Thanks for following along with us on Herald Press’s Sparking Peace awareness tour!
178 Comments
My daughter made a craft for me that took a lot of time to make. Her act of kindness meant so much.
Exciting book, thanks!
Very creative book
I’d love to win so I can gift it to a friend for her daughter!
This should be a fantastic read.
We would be excited to get this book.
Sounds like a great book.
Great lesson in this book
I would like to win this for my little one.
Do you have any standards for your writing?
Love to win so I can read the book with my friend and her daughter!
This should be a very enjoyable read. Thanks for sharing.
This is an interesting book that teaches a valuable lesson.
Love it
My friend’s son is 6 – I think he’d love this!
This has such a great cover. Thanks for sharing.
Great message
Adopting dogs brings me joy
Seems like this book teaches a good life lesson.
Good luck to everyone – I’m sure everyone entering would love to read this book!
My little one picking flowers for me is an act of kindness that brightens my day!
This book is a good story.
This looks amazing
This should be a delightful read. Thanks for sharing.
This looks like a great read – I hope I win so I can give it a shot!
This book teaches a good lesson about resolving conflict.
I’m trying to win this for my Grand Nephew. Thanks for the chance.
Sounds like a wonderful story.
When I moved, three friends came over to help clean the house. Their kindness sure helped me out.
Looks incredible
The ‘ol swords into plowshares but brought forth into more modern times. A good idea for a kid’s book!
A hug when I am having a bad day creates peace.
A good educational book.
This should be a great story for kids. Thanks for sharing.
Great title
Has writing always been your dream job?
A few months ago – I only had a few items while checking out at the grocery store. Not only did someone let me cut in front of them, they paid for my items.
I would love to win this book.
I think this book is so cool
This is such a cute book. Thanks for sharing.
A few months ago at the store, someone let me skip the line and paid for my groceries – a simple act that truly stuck with me.
Fabulous cover
This looks like a book for all ages. Thanks for sharing.
I was in line at a fast food restaurant and when taking out money to pay, the person in front of me had paid. I paid it forward and paid for the person behind me. The cashier said this had been going on for quite a few minutes. A simple act of kindness can truly help a person out!
An exciting story!
Sounds like a great read.
Fabulous book, thanks!
Great new book
Describe your dream writer retreat.
My friend’s daughter’s name is Lilly and I’d like to win because I really think she’d like this!
I hope our leaders find that spark!
This book is nicely illustrated.
I really like the cover on this book. Thanks again for the giveaway opportunity!
TY for the giveaway
Such a great story – thanks for the chance – I hope I can win, read it, and gift it to a friend!
I’m thankful for the questions to be answered because they have made me reflect on acts of peace or kindness. A family member, who distanced himself from the entire family, spoke to me yesterday and asked for forgiveness. It felt good to have peace in that situation again.
An intriguing story.
Sounds like a fabulous book.
Love this giveaway
We are so excited to check this out.
Loving The Cover Of This Book
I have a lens with a small crack in it – the photos are extremely unique. Broken for the win!
I want to win because I could use a gift card this month. The book would be for my little one.
This book would go into our personal library.
Lovely giveaway
The cover looks great.
A broken relationship with a family member over incorrect information he received turned into a better relationship in the end.