Heroes, living and past

It might be a sign of the times. The three children’s books that have come across my desk have serious themes: defending freedom, speaking up for human rights and standing up to bullies and dictators.

The two recent books I received are both written by veteran kids book writer Ann Diament Koffsky: What Emma Wrote: The Woman Behind the Words on the Statue of Liberty (Apples & Honey Press), illustrated by N. Tarcan, and Blazing Humor: Mel Brooks Is Seriously Funny!! (Intergalactic Afikoman), illustrated by Jason Kirschner. The other book I reviewed came to my attention last year, but was published in 2023: Brave Volodymyr: The Story of Volodymyr Zelensky and the Fight for Ukraine by Linda Elovitz Marshall, with illustrations by Grasya Oliyko (Quill Tree Books).

I hesitated to review Brave Volodymyr because it felt too soon for such a book to have been written. Published as Russia’s continuing war on Ukraine was just starting, I was concerned what history might eventually say about Zelensky being a hero or not. But, after reading the books on Lazarus and Brooks, I see that biographies targeted to young readers seem to simplify complexities in general and have an upbeat tone, whether talking about helping immigrants (Lazarus), countering hatred with comedy (Brooks), or literally fighting for freedom (Zelensky).

For Elovitz Marshall, a Ukrainian-American Jew, Zelensky is a hero, no doubt. In telling of his rise to the Ukraine presidency, she portrays him as a child who hated lies, a teenager who knew that “freedom depends on truth,” and as a law student who “wanted to help make Ukraine a better, kinder, more joyful place,” which he realized he could do by being a comedian. We learn about some of his acting career, his marriage to Olena, who he met at school, and their family, as it grows. As adult readers know, when Ukraine’s promising future is derailed by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s influence over Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, Zelensky created the TV series Servant of the People. In it, a high school teacher is appalled by the corruption in Ukraine and so runs for president, and wins. In real life, Zelensky the comedian runs for president, and wins.

Brave Volodymyr takes readers through Russia’s first attacks and the world’s response – the aid and moral support. The ending is in the past tense, Zelensky having led the Ukrainian people in the fight against Russia, but Elovitz Marshall leaves it open enough. Even if she hadn’t, young readers would still learn something about an important person.

The biography of Brooks is less political and Diament Koffsky isn’t personally invested in making Brooks look good, as far as I know, but she is no less complimentary about her subject than is Elovitz Marshall about hers. Brooks, too, is still alive – he turned 100 this past June, though Blazing Humor focuses on only his first 90 years, lol.

Apparently, when Brooks was 5 years old, he saw a scary movie and was comforted afterwards by a funny story his mother told him. When he was older, he found that humour could defuse bullies. Even older, his comedy allowed him to overcome challenging circumstances, including while serving in the Second World War. Brooks’ career included laughter for laughter’s sake, but also ridiculed antisemites and racists – taking some of their power away. As Diament Koffsky stresses in her author’s note: Brooks embodied the ancient Jewish “tradition” that humour is serious business, in that it can open us to learning, make it easier to connect with others, and help us be resilient.

What Emma Wrote has equally serious themes: the impact words can have; that we can, through our actions, make a positive difference in the world; and the importance of the Jewish tradition of “welcoming the stranger.”

Lazarus is best known for her poem “The New Colossus,” which is found on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty, welcoming the “huddled masses yearning to breathe free / The wretched refuse of your teeming shore / Send these, the homeless, the tempest-tost to me / I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

In What Emma Wrote, young readers learn how Lazarus always loved writing, how she became an activist for the Jewish refugees in New York who had fled persecution in Russia, and how her writing changed some minds on the topic of immigration. There is an appendix of sorts with fun facts about the Statue of Liberty.

All three of these books are colourfully illustrated, suiting the tone of their stories, which are entertaining and could serve to start some interesting conversations and learning paths for young readers. None is the whole truth and nothing but the truth, but each is well meaning and a good read.