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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:

When her mother died in a fire, eight-year-old Jerri thought life couldn't get worse. She was wrong. Sent to live with people who didn't want her, Jerri was powerless to stop her once-happy childhood from becoming a nightmare of cruelty and neglect. Only a stubborn belief in her own worth and a fierce will to live allowed her to reach adulthood physically and emotionally intact. This is a book that will inspire not only those who have been orphans or foster children, but anyone who has known the pain of being unwanted.

....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?

In this emotional and thought-provoking book of poetry, bestselling author Nikki Grimes finds inspiration from poets of the Harlem Renaissance. Moved by the evocative verse of legendary writers from the era, Grimes has composed gorgeous new poetry with timely themes for today. By using the "Golden Shovel" poetic form, she has created wholly original poems based on the works of master poets like Langston Hughes, Georgia Douglas Johnson, Jean Toomer, and others who enriched history during the Harlem Renaissance.