Customer Reviews

Dare To Dream!: 25 Extraordinary Lives

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If I had been given a history book written by Humphrey, I would've fell in love with History! She writes in a way that makes historical figures seem interesting, lively, and important. Not only does she include many personal attributes with each profile, but she explains why these people made significant contributions to history (past and present)!

Dare to Dream: 25 extraordinary lives by Sandra McLeod Humphrey is so needed by our society, where violent solutions to conflict and demands for instant results are all too common.

Because a wide range of personalities is featured, each reader will identify with some of the characters. The individuals, each described as a young person and then as an adult, include: Nellie Bly, who used journalism as a tool for social justice; Jim Thorpe, a Native American who endured physical and emotional hardship and was known as "The World's Greatest Athlete"; Gloria Estefan who found emotional escape in music and became a successful performer as well as an advocate for abused children; Ben Carson who was ridiculed for failing grades, changed his learning habits, and became the director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins.

How refreshing to find a source of inspiration which is so accessible to young people. Teachers will welcome this book, with its readable chapters which are brief enough to be included within class periods. Dare to Dream comes at a time when we need real heroes and reasons for hope.

This collection of twenty-five short biographies introduces us to heroes in all avenues of achievement: invention, medicine, arts, science, education, sports. Each story is a testament to perseverence and self-determination. Whatever a child's dream (science, education, sports, invention, performing arts), there is a hero AND heroine who made their dream come true. The collection ran the gamut of great achievers. Some I knew about, others were new. The stories were too short for my taste. Although balanced in numbers, some of the selections puzzle me. For example, why Sammy Sosa and not Roberto Clemente? The stories have enough information to potentially inspire a child to research and learn more about a person of interest. Great balance of men and women for all fields of achievement.
The mini-biographies were choppy at times. The collection may be too heavy with sports figures (24% are athletes, all but one male), including Michael Jordan, who left school early to go pro? The biographies celebrate personal triumphs, despite others' judgments and roadblocks. A great book for talking about being true to one's self!

In today's fast-paced, media-driven world, we have plenty of celebrities, but few heroes. While celebrities are famous (in many cases, for questionable behavior), heroes are esteemed for character, courage and achievement. In other words, a celebrity does not a hero make.

As parents, how do we teach our children to see the difference? How do we teach them that the actress who gets attention for taking off her clothes or the athlete who gets media coverage for punching a fan are merely celebrities, not heroes?

Sandra McLeod Humphrey's latest book, "Dare to Dream! 25 Extraordinary Lives" provides a solution to our dilemma. Humphrey, a retired psychologist and author of the series of "What Do You Do?" books (which foster moral development in children), has done it again with her latest book. "Dare to Dream!" reveals the struggles of real-life heroes and how tough choices led to development of character, moral fiber and social change. Reading about how these people led their lives will give your children role models after which to pattern their behavior.

"Dare to Dream!" has something for every child. Sandra McLeod Humphrey has carefully selected heroes from every ethnicity and walk of life, from sports to science, from music to poetry. Humphrey chronicles hero development during each person's life, from child to adult, so kids can begin to see how choices shape a life. Included in the book are current heroines (like Maya Angelou) and historic heroes (like Abe Lincoln). Although the characterizations are information-rich, they are brief-most are no more than two or three pages-which makes the book a great summer read. While reading the engaging stories from "Dare to Dream!" your children will be sharpening their literary skills and learning how to rise above time, place and circumstance to become heroes of their own lives.


Laura Ramirez
Author of "Keepers of the Children: Native American Wisdom and Parenting"
www.walk-in-peace.com
Publisher of Family Matters Online Parenting Magazine
www.parenting-child-development.com

I feel that Sandra Humphrey's DARE TO DREAM is one of the best new children's books on today's market! It is definitely the book to buy for children that need a boost to their own self-esteem by recognizing that ordinary people that follow their dreams and never give up CAN become extraordinary individuals! Ms. Humphrey's well-researched biographies of these 25 heroes and heroines, past and present, makes me realize just how much their constant setbacks actually helped create the core of their characters and personalities, and firmly resolved their drive to succeed when it would have been much easier to just give up on their dreams. It renewed my own strength of purpose as an adult to follow my own dreams, especially when my spirit started to sag with what I considered overwhelming defeat. I would highly recommend DARE TO DREAM for our troubled young people that so desperately need role models to look up to -- real people that really DID what they set their minds to do. They will learn through the lives highlighted that it is okay to be different; that no matter HOW others perceive you, it is okay to believe in yourself; you should follow your heart to attain your goals; and, no matter the obstacle... NEVER EVER give up your dreams! This book WILL DEFINITELY turn some lives around, young and old, when the reader realizes there IS hope for their dreams to be followed after all!

If I were a teacher, I would definitely make this a required reading for all my students. It's short with only four pages for each character. However, the "As a boy" + "As a man" and "As a girl" + "As a woman" format, the smart pick of heroes/heroines and the excellent story writing skill of the author, well distinguished it from other biographies of the same high inspirational value and make it particularly suitable for children and people with short concentration span. Educational and interesting by all means. Highly recommended!

"dare to dream" is an excellent book for children who suffer from learning disabilities and social issues. Many of the heroes chosen for this book had difficult childhoods. It's refreshing to see how they excelled when they were able to fly on their own. Children need to have hope for their future and faith in following their dreams. Thanks to Sharon they now have a book they can turn to for an entire list of heroes!
Dotsie Bregel
(...)

Don't you love a writer who taps into something good and shares it with you? Sandra McLeod Humphrey does that in Dare To Dream! 25 extraordinary lives (Prometheus Books, 2005, ISBN 1-59102-280-0). The author's intent was to restore dreams and heroes to young readers, by telling the stories of ordinary people who accomplish extraordinary things. She's succeeded so well, that the young people might have to wrest the book out of their parents' hands if they want to read it. I picked it up to browse just one short example, and 56 pages later, I would have fought off anyone who tried to wrest it from me! It's compelling reading and a inspired gift for all of the young people in your life. By the way, this author is a hero in her own skin. Look her up! Audrey B. Baird, Editor/Publisher Once Upon A Time

Dare To Dream! is a fascinating collection of past and present writers, athletes, scientists, politicians, inventors, social reformers, and performers who overcame great obstacles to make a positive difference in the world. What I found wonderful about this book is that it generated wonderful conversations with my kids. For example, my 11-year-old told me how surprised he was to find out that even heroes had learning problems in school. These heroes weren't good at everything they did and much of their successes came from learning from their mistakes. Eureka! These are the kind of heroes we need as role models for our youth--not the superficial celebrities glamorized by entertainment shows and magazines. I highly recommend this book!

Good selection of heroes. Information is fairly interesting, but reading level is high. I am using it with students who need to be motivated, and the vocabulary is difficult for them.