Heroes and She-roes: Poems of Amazing and Everyday Heroes

by J. Patrick Lewis

Overview

Twenty-one entertaining, thought-provoking poems chronicle the good that people have done in service of others. Bypassing those of mere fame, this striking collection is a celebration of such persons as Gandhi, Rosa Parks, teachers, a thirteen-year-old child-labor crusader, firefighters, Cesar Chavez, a feisty nun, and:
. . . the valiant and the brave.
Those simple people known by
Two simple words: They gave.
Each portrait includes an expressive illustration and additional factual material, and an eloquent afterword tells of Mr. Lewis's own childhood hero. This memorable book invites readers to explore the legacy of human generosity which lights the path for tomorrow's hero's.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780803729254
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	03/17/2005
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	7.31(w) x 10.38(h) x 0.36(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

J. Patrick Lewis is the author of A World of Wonders and The Bookworm's Feast.

Editorial Reviews

[A]n important title that will inspire young people and perhaps encourage them. – School Library Journal

From the Publisher

Gr 3-7-In this attractively illustrated collection, Lewis spotlights many famous individuals-Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and Gandhi, but he also lauds those who are less well known, such as Roberto Clemente, who "saved his greatest heroics to/Rescue earthquake victims of Nicaragua" and Sister Jeannette Normandin, who founded an assisted-living center for women with AIDS. Included also are nameless others-"Rosie the Riveter" ("High I beams/And welders' seams/Making History with a Her"); a firefighter at the World Trade Center ("-on that day/Badge 5-6-9/Did all he could/To redefine/Uncommon good"); and immigrants ("To transform this new nation,/They opened up closed doors/And bravely rolled/New into old/To cultivate these shores"). A final poem encourages readers to become heroes who "set aside their fear/To lend a hand or lend an ear,-.No matter what or where or who,/When something must be done,/They do." Notes following each poem give a brief explanation about the significance of the subject. Cooke's illustrations, created with oil on illustration board, present compelling portraits and help to create a book that is both inviting and educational. This is an important title that will inspire young people and perhaps encourage them to look more deeply into the lives of others as well as their own.-Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

The best-described hero in Lewis's book is actually in the author's note, where he writes about his school janitor at St. Mary of the Lake, who always made kids feel better. The 21 poems about heroic men and women unfortunately do not sing and sometimes do not even hum sweetly. These very short verses-16 lines at their longest-are each followed by a short paragraph giving some more information about their subject. These range from an acrostic about Roberto Clemente to a quick quatrain about The Elementary School Teacher ("A teacher is a person / unafraid / To get the third degree / From Second Grade!") to a free verse about Ida Wells-Barnett, a journalist who spoke out against lynching. Unfortunately, most of these are not felicitous, and the rhymes fall like hammers. The illustrations, oil paint on illustration board, feel ponderous. Gandhi looks like Yoda, Joan of Arc has long hair when one of the things everyone knows about her is that she cut hers short to wear men's garb and armor, and Cesar Chavez's head floats in a migrant workers' sky like the Wizard of Oz. Lewis has done wonderful work in the past; this one doesn't measure up. (author's note) (Picture book/biography. 6-10)

Kirkus Reviews