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A new kids' book featuring a gay couple is dedicated to Pulse nightclub victims.

Authors Chaz Harris and Adam Reynolds wrapped up their children's book  "Promised Land" — a fairytale featuring a gay couple — during the summer of 2016.

Illustration courtesy of Adam Reynolds.

The very next day, the Pulse nightclub massacre happened.

“We locked off our text, said, 'that’s done’, handed it to the illustrators, and then [the shooting] happened," Harris explained to BuzzFeed.


49 people were killed and dozens more were injured at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, on June 12, 2016 — the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.

Photo by Bryan R. Smith/AFP/Getty Images.

Pulse was an LGBTQ nightclub. "Promised Land" follows a gay couple.

And that connection, of course, wasn't lost on the authors from New Zealand.

Photo courtesy of Adam Reynolds.

"Promised Land" is about love, friendship, and acceptance.

Here's how the authors described the story:

"In 'Promised Land,' a young prince and a farm boy meet by chance in the forest and their newfound friendship soon blossoms into love. However, things get complicated when the queen's sinister new husband seeks control over the enchanted forest that the farm boy's family are responsible for protecting. In a Kingdom where all are considered equal, regardless of what they look like or who they love, Promised Land is a new fairytale about friendship, responsibility, adventure and love."

The book also includes a map of the Kingdom of Valeria, where the story takes place, which features locations named after LGBTQ civil rights leaders and iconic figures in the fight for equality.

There's "Shepard's Bay," in honor of Matthew Shepard — who was murdered in 1998 for being gay — as well as "Rivera Ranges," in honor of the late transgender activist Sylvia Rivera, among others.

Map courtesy of Adam Reynolds.

That's why Adam and Chaz decided to dedicate "Promised Land" to the 49 victims of the Pulse massacre.

“I was personally very affected by [the shooting],” Harris said. “There was a vigil here in Wellington that I went along to. I had people saying ‘Why were you so upset? Did you know anyone who died?' But an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.”

Illustration courtesy of Adam Reynolds.

"Promised Land" isn't just another kids' book — it's one that lets LGBTQ children around the world know they can find their own happily ever after.

“If you don’t see yourself in stories, you don’t see yourself in the world," Harris explained in a statement. "With everything happening in the world right now, we need to change the message of fear and intolerance towards anyone who is different.”

Learn more about Promised Land.

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Sorry, Labradors. After 31 years, America has a new favorite dog.

The American Kennel Club has crowned a new favorite.

via Pixabay

A sad-looking Labrador Retriever

The sweet-faced, loveable Labrador Retriever is no longer America’s favorite dog breed. The breed best known for having a heart of gold has been replaced by the smaller, more urban-friendly French Bulldog.

According to the American Kennel Club, for the past 31 years, the Labrador Retriever was America’s favorite dog, but it was eclipsed in 2022 by the Frenchie. The rankings are based on nearly 716,500 dogs newly registered in 2022, of which about 1 in 7 were Frenchies. Around 108,000 French Bulldogs were recorded in the U.S. in 2022, surpassing Labrador Retrievers by over 21,000.

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Today Info/Youtube

Taylor Swift "diving" below the stage of her Eras Tour concert

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Case in point—a video from the “Anti-Hero” pop star's kick-off concert that’s making quite the splash online.

In a mesmerizing blend of live performance and hologram wizardry, audiences saw Swift, clad in a flowy red dress, dive into a pool built into the stage. She then swam across to emerge through waves in a shimmery jumpsuit, just before climbing a ladder and disappearing into a cloud.

Basically, it was like a romantic fairy tale brought to life.

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An 8-year-old snuck his handwritten book onto a library shelf. Now it has a 56-person waiting list.

Dillon Helbig's 81-page graphic novel— written by "Dillon His Self"—captured the hearts of his local librarians and their patrons.

Dillon Helbig's 81-page graphic novel captured the hearts of his local librarians.

Writing a book is no easy task, even for adult professional writers. Many would-be authors dream of a day when their work can be found on library shelves, unsure if it will ever come.

But for 8-year-old Dillon Helbig, that day has already arrived—in truly unconventional fashion—thanks to his own determination to make it happen.

Dillon wrote his 81-page graphic novel, "The Adventures of Dillon Helbig's Crismis" (written by "Dillon His Self") in a hardcover journal with colored pencils over the course of a few days. He even put a label on the back of the book that reads "Made in Idho" [sic] and put an illustrated spine label on it as well. Then, without telling anyone, he brought it to his local library in Boise, Idaho, and slipped it in among the books in the children's section.

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A mom takes a selfie with her two children.

France’s National Assembly has passed a new law that could seriously impact parents’ ability to share photos of their children online. If passed by the Senate and signed by the president, it would give courts the power to ban parents from posting pictures of their children online.

The bill is controversial because it takes away parents’ rights and puts them in the hands of the government. But supporters believe there are more than a few good reasons for the potential ban.

First, it keeps the child’s image out of the hands of unsavory characters. Member of Parliament Bruno Studer, who proposed the bill, told Le Monde, “'A 13-year-old child has an average of 1,300 images of themselves circulating on the internet. These are photos that can be misused for child pornography or that can lead to bullying in the school environment.”

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Bruce Willis recently celebrated his 68th birthday.

Back in March 2022, legendary action actor Bruce Willis was diagnosed with aphasia and took an official step away from the spotlight. Then, in February 2023, the beloved "Die Hard" star progressed into frontotemporal dementia, an incurable brain disorder often mistaken for Alzheimer’s that mainly affects personality, behavior and language, according to the Mayo Clinic.


Despite the tragic news, Willis is supported by loved ones, as seen in a video posted by ex-wife Demi Moore. The clip, posted to Twitter on March 19, captures Willis' family surrounding him in celebration of his 68th birthday.
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A recently posted story on Reddit shows a mother confidently standing up for her family after being bullied by a teacher for her culture. Reddit user Flowergardens0 posted the story to the AITA forum, where people ask whether they are wrong in a specific situation.

Over 5,600 people commented on the story, and an overwhelming majority thought the mother was right. Here’s what went down:

“I (34F) have a (5M) son who attends preschool. A few hours after I picked him up from school today, I got a phone call from his teacher,” Flowergardens0 wrote. “She made absolutely no effort to sound kind when she, in an extremely rude and annoyed tone, told me to stop packing my son such ‘disgusting and inappropriate’ lunches."

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