|
Home
New York Times
bestselling novelist Brad Meltzer
HEROES
FOR MY SON
Eight years ago, on the night New York Times bestselling novelist Brad Meltzer
became a father, it hit him. “…I remember looking up at the crisp black sky and thinking about
this baby boy we were just blessed with. That’s when I asked myself the question for the first time:
what kind of man did I want my son to be?”
He would go on to start a book of advice for his
son—a book he planned to write throughout his son’s life¾but
he got stuck when it became clear that so much of what you want to tell your child about life, about being in this world,
cannot be contained in exhortations alone. You can’t simply say: “Be nice.
Be kind.” He began thinking about his own life, how he had learned about kindness, patience,
and selflessness. He realized that one of the most potent of influences had been his grandfather, who would
spend hours telling and retelling a made-up story about Batman and Robin—simply because it was something the young Brad
loved hearing again and again.
At that moment, Meltzer realized that there are
heroes all around us¾from Jim Henson, to Rosa Parks, to Mr. Rogers¾and it was those heroes that he wanted to share with his son. HEROES
FOR MY SON (Harper Studio/May 11, 2010/$19.99) are a book that shows you far more than great people.
It shows you the single moment that makes each person great. It shows men and women facing impossible
setbacks, listening to their own curiosity, and rising beyond what anyone ever expected of them. In a time
where we are challenged in so many ways—by wars, a failing economy, moral failings of leaders and would-be leaders—the
simple question of what makes a hero is as crucial and timely now for adults as it is for children. Bringing
together vignettes, quotes and photos (many of which have not been seen in decades); Meltzer creates a special kind of guide
to just those qualities that make a life great.
Meltzer chose 52 men and women as varied as
the Wright Brothers and the cop who would help create the Make-A-Wish Foundation; Mother Theresa and Lucille Ball;
Jonas Salk, Jesse Owens, and yes, Grandfather Ben Rubin. The story he tells about them is pitch-perfect,
and each tale focuses on the telling, little-known moment when character was forged. It might not be the
moment we think of—for example Thomas Jefferson is not included because he wrote the Declaration of Independence, he’s
there because he didn’t publicize that fact (indeed, it didn’t become common knowledge that he was the author until sixteen years after his death). Meltzer wanted his son to know that kind of modesty.
