Cooperative Collection Development

In this biography for middle-grade readers, Nancy Roe Pimm tells the story of Geraldine “Jerrie” Mock, the first woman to fly solo around the world. In her trusty Cessna, The Spirit of Columbus—also known as Charlie—she traveled from Columbus, Ohio, on an eastward route that totaled nearly twenty-three thousand miles and took almost a month. Overcoming wind, ice, mechanical problems, and maybe even sabotage, Mock persevered.

....Is a hero simply someone who has achieved great financial and popular success? Is heroism just about money and fame? If so, any rich celebrity could qualify as a hero.

Or does being a hero have to do with the quality of a person's character? is it more about courage, determination, and a kind of inner fire that keeps a person going in the face of all kinds of difficulties?

How do some people accomplish so much with their lives? Is it that they're just lucky? Or amazingly smart? Or is it that they are ordinary people who have learned to motivate themselves, even when the going gets tough? Read about real-life people who have faced real-life obstacles--maybe some of the same obstacles that stand between you and the achievement of your dreams. Despite their problems, all have found ways to motivate themselves to succeed. Here are four of the people you'll meet in this book:

As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. . . . I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong. - Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln grew up with little more than a second-grade education. His father thought school was a waste of time and wanted young Abe to learn carpentry and farming instead. Even so, Lincoln developed a love of reading so great that he would often walk five miles just to borrow a book. In time, his reading would help to shape a sharp mind, a keen sense of humor, and a kind heart.