The best-selling author Brad Meltzer has a bit of a Superman obsession. He collects all manner of Superman memorabilia and has even worked the theme into one of his recent suspense novels. But when his son was born, Meltzer thought hard about what the word hero really means. So he started writing a little book on the side that would include a collection of real-life, flesh-and-blood heroes that he would eventually present to his son, who is now 8 years old.
Heroes for My Son includes short stories from the lives of Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Mr. Rogers and Jackie Robinson, among 48 others. And despite the book’s title, Meltzer, who has three children, including a daughter, says the people he wrote about should be inspiring to any child.