Born in Ghana, West Africa, with one deformed leg, he was dismissed by most people--but not by his mother, who taught him to reach for his dreams. As a boy, Emmanuel hopped to school more than two miles each way, learned to play soccer, left home at age thirteen to provide for his family, and, eventually, became a cyclist. He rode an astonishing four hundred miles across Ghana in 2001, spreading his powerful message: disability is not inability. Today, Emmanuel continues to work on behalf of the disabled.
Thompson's lyrical prose and Qualls's bold collage illustrations offer a powerful celebration of triumphing over adversity.
Includes an author's note with more information about Emmanuel's charity.
Sean Qualls has illustrated many highly acclaimed children's books, including Giant Steps to Change the World by Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee, Lullaby by Langston Hughes, and Before John Was a Jazz Giant by Carole Boston Weatherford, which was named a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book. Sean also created the art for Dizzy by Jonah Winter, which received five starred reviews, and Freedom Song by Sally M. Walker. Learn more at seanqualls.com.
"Thompson...presents a warm, matter-of-fact overview of the life of Emmanuel Ofofu Yeboah...[while] Qualls provides solid visual and emotional scaffolding for the setbacks and triumphs Yeboah faced."
--Publishers Weekly
"This powerful and winning picture book tells the story of a young man overcoming the odds."
--School Library Journal starred review