If you ask most young readers today who their heroes are, they will often cite athletes, entertainers, or social media icons. But who are some of the heroes of the past who have shaped the course of our world today? Who are some lesser-known names who have made an impact? These nine new picture book biographies strive to answer that question.
Follow Chester: A College Football Team Fights Racism and Makes History, by Gloria Respress-Churchwell and Laura Freeman
In the fall of 1947, Jackie Robinson has just become the first black player on a major league baseball team. And at Harvard University, Chester Pierce is the only member of the starting lineup who is African American. A big game with the University of Virginia is on the horizon, but Jim Crow laws are still commonplace in the South, and Chester is not allowed to play. That is, until the Harvard coach decides to change the rules. With the rallying cry of, “Follow Chester!” the Chester and the Harvard University team make history, both on and off the field.
What Miss Mitchell Saw, by Hayley Barrett and Diana Sudyka
Growing up on Nantucket, Maria Mitchell’s parents always encouraged her curiosity. She especially enjoyed the night sky, as seen through her father’s telescope. Under her father’s instruction, Maria learns the names of the planets and the stars. As an adult, she continues her celestial studies first as a teacher, then as a librarian. So one night, many years later, when Maria sees a bright light flash across the sky, she knows exactly what it is. Once again, it is her parents who encourage her to share her discovery with the world, but she must compete with other male stargazers in order to claim her moment in history as the first female professional astronomer.
A Place to Land: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Speech That Inspired a Nation, by Barry Wittenstein and Jerry Pinkney
On August 27th 1963, the night before the famous March on Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. sits in the Willard Hotel, with a few other notables of the time, including Reverend Ralph Abernathy, Clarences Jones, and Bayard Rustin, the organizer of the march. “What do I say?” King asks. Each man has a different suggestion, but they all agree on one thing: leave out the part about the dream. King retreats to his room, and spends the night writing. The following day, in front of 250,000 people, he delivers a speech to which the crowd applauds enthusiastically. And yet, it just doesn’t feel complete. Until King pushes aside his papers and speaks the four most famous words of the civil rights movement, “I have a dream…”
The Bravest Man in the World, by Patricia Polacco
After 8-year-old Jonathan Harker’s mother dies, he’s forced to live on the streets, accompanied only by his fiddle. After his fiddle is destroyed and he flees from the cops, Jonathan must hide. When he’s able to come out again, he discovers he’s a stowaway on board the White Star Line’s newest, grandest ship, Titanic. He’s found and befriended by a musician, Wallace Hartley. Hartley recognizes a talent in Jonathan, and gives him not only a violin, but the chance to play before one of the ship’s most famous passengers, which in turn leads to a rare opportunity that will change the course of Jonathan’s life. But before that can happen, comes the night that Jonathan must watch as the Bravest Man in the World uses his music in a way Jonathan will never forget.
Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist, by Julie Leung and Chris Sasaki
A boy named Wong Geng Yeo boards an ocean liner with his father, bound for the “Golden Mountain” of America. As the ship travels across the sea, the boy memorizes facts written on small pieces of paper, facts that make up his new identity and convince the immigration officers in America to let him stay. Sure enough, upon arriving at Angel Island, the boy is separated from his father for many weeks. When his time for interrogation finally comes, he recalls the information on the paper, and is released into his new life with his new name, Tai Yow Wong, which is again Americanized to Tyrus. As he grows, Tyrus draws whenever he can, whether it be on scraps of paper, or with a janitor’s mop, until the opportunity comes for Tyrus to make his big break. But even then, Tyrus faces hurdles to success that keep the world from recognizing his talent for many years to come.
Thurgood, by Jonah Winter and Bryan Collier
Some kids are just born with a natural talent. That was the case for Thoroughgood Marshall, who, at a very young age, convinced his parents to change his name to Thurgood. And he never stops arguing for what he thinks is right. At the dinner table, a teenage Thurgood delights in debates with his father. He becomes captain of the debate team. When the University of Michigan law school refuses to admit him based on his skin color, Thurgood attends Howard University. When he graduates, he brings a legal battle to the school that had rejected him—and wins. From the debate team to law school to the Supreme Court, Thurgood Marshall trailblazes his way through U.S. history.
Little Libraries, Big Heroes, by Miranda Paul and John Parra
Sometimes the biggest heroes come in the unlikeliest form—like Todd Bol. As a child, Todd struggles in school. But he has a mother who believes in Todd,the power of reading, and dreaming big. It is in her memory that the full-grown Todd creates a little library and places it on his front lawn. When it becomes the hit of the neighborhood, Todd dreams bigger. This dream leads to thousands of Little Free Libraries worldwide, from big cities to small towns to refugee camps. Just as Todd honored his mother, so does this book honor the memory of Todd Bol, Big Hero of the Little Library movement.
Ruby’s Hope: A Story of the Girl in the Most Famous Photograph of the Depression, by Monica Kulling and Sarah Dvojack
Ruby loves her home in Oklahoma. Then comes the stock market crash, and the Dust Bowl, and the Depression, and one day, Ruby’s family is forced to leave their home in search of a better life for themselves in California. What they find instead is more hardship, living in a migrant camp and getting work picking produce when they can. One day, a lady arrives in camp and introduces herself to Ruby as Dorothea Lange. Intrigued by the camera, Ruby asks Dorothea if she’d take her mother’s picture. The resulting photo, now known as Migrant Mother, becomes the face of the Depression, bringing awareness to the migrant plight.
Hooray for Women! More Than 70 Inspirational and Amazing Women, by Marcia Williams
From more commonly known names such as Cleopatra, Florence Nightingale, and Anne Frank to lesser known women of history including Boudicca, Wangari Maathai, and Mary Wollstonecraft, this book covers centuries of influential women. 16 women are featured in two-page spreads that tell their stories in a graphic-novel style format. Six more pages briefly describe dozens more, while the author’s note lists even more, and gives the reader an opportunity to add to that list. The women featured span time periods, cultures, and contributions, but all have one thing in common: they dreamed big, worked hard, and left their imprint on the world.
What other inspirational leaders of the past and present would you add to the list?
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