Shelley Hallier, ’95, Writes Children’s Book

Shelley Hallier, ’95, has written her first children’s book, “Where Does Mommy Go?” As a working mother, Hallier wanted her children to understand where she went every day and to help other working mothers with the same undertaking.

“My full intention was to go back to work,” said Hallier. “I was sitting in the living room with my daughter across my lap thinking, ‘What will she think when I leave for work?’ My brain followed that thought process and I came up with the verse for the book in half an hour.”

“Where Does Mommy Go?” answers the questions most children have when their mother leaves for work and reassures them no matter where mommy is, she is always thinking of them. “I want children to understand that mom will leave and have adventures in her career,” said Hallier. “It makes us who we are and even though we’re doing those things, they’re still number one.”

Juggling work and family life is a skill many parents acquire and Hallier credits Rockhurst for molding her into the thriving adult she is. “Rockhurst did a lot to prepare me to be a successful adult — it definitely reinforced my Roman Catholic values, which has family at the core,” she said.

“I was a history major and had the Rev. Edward K. Burger, S.J., and he looked at me one time and said ‘You’re a sparkler; you’re one of those people that sparkle,’” she said. “Rockhurst built my confidence quite a bit.”

“Where Does Mommy Go?” was released June 10 and has received a positive response from the press, as well as Hallier’s children.

“They love it,” she said. When she was first crafting the idea, her children were her critics. “They sat on my lap and I read it to them from the computer,” said Hallier. “My daughter said ‘read it again’ and now she has it memorized”.

“This was easy for me because I live it,” she said. Hallier has a second book in the works, centered on the father figure. Her husband won’t be much help on the subject as he is “a numbers guy and it is a little out of the box for him” but his support from the first book will surely apply to the second.

For more information about “Where Does Mommy Go?” or to purchase the book visit Amazon.com orwheremommygoes.com.