That's What Heroes Do — Out Today

Today is a day I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. My new children’s book, That’s What Heroes Do, is officially out in the world.

I want to tell you why I wrote it, and why I hope you’ll pick up a copy — whether you have kids in your life or not.

Why this book

Somewhere along the way, we lost the plot on what a hero actually is. Turn on the TV, scroll through a feed, and you’ll see the word “hero” thrown at people who, frankly, haven’t earned it. Loud voices get called brave. People chasing fame get called role models. And politicians, yuck. Kids are watching all of it.

I wrote this book because I felt a real lack of genuine inspiration out there for the next generation. The wrong people are being called heroes, and our kids deserve better than that.

It’s perfectly normal for a kid to look up to Superman or Batman or whoever is on the lunchbox this year. I did. Most of us did. But I wanted to write something that gently reminds children — and let’s be honest, the rest of us too — that heroism isn’t a cape or a costume or a superpower. It’s a choice. And it’s a choice they can make every single day.

The small ways, and the ultimate one

Heroism, in real life, almost always starts small. Standing up for a kid who’s being picked on. Telling the truth when it’s easier to lie. Sharing when you don’t want to. Including someone who’s been left out. Putting other people before yourself in a hundred tiny, unglamorous moments. That’s where it begins.

But the book also doesn’t shy away from the fact that some heroes pay the ultimate price. One of those heroes was my friend, Captain Andreas O’Keeffe, who was killed in Iraq in 2018. Andreas makes a prominent appearance in this book, and I’m honored that he does. He was the kind of person who lived the lesson I’m trying to pass on to children — that putting others first is the highest thing a person can do. I wanted his name and his example to live on in the hands of young readers, and in the hearts of the parents reading along with them.

Who this book is for

You don’t need to have kids in your house to find this book worthwhile. It’s a reminder for any of us — a small, beautifully illustrated reset on what we should be honoring and aspiring to. Keep it on a coffee table. Give it to a niece or a nephew. Hand it to a teacher friend.

But if you do have kids — this one is a must-read. Read it with them. Talk about it after. Ask them who in their own lives is a real hero. You might be surprised by the answers, and I think you’ll be glad you started the conversation.

Thank you

I want to close with the most important part: thank you. Thank you to everyone who has supported me, this project, and the values behind it. Thank you to the readers who showed up early, to the friends and family who encouraged me through every draft, and to all of you who believe — like I do — that the next generation deserves real heroes to look up to.

Pick up a copy of That’s What Heroes Do today either via that link, or your favorite retailer. Read it to a kid. Read it to yourself. And then go out and be the kind of person it talks about.

That’s what heroes do.

— Adam