Schneider Family Book Award

The Schneider Family Book Award is a newer award that has been awarded annually since 2004.  The award goes to authors and illustrators who create an artistic expression of the disability experience.  We all know children and people who struggle with disabilities, whether they are mental, physical or emotional.  Including books in our home and classrooms about people with disabilities creates a more open and accepting culture.  Check out past winners of the Schneider award for other great books that speak about disabilities.

The award is given out to several books, usually they are broken up into age groups.  I am going to share the winner of the 0-10 age range.  I will list the other winners and hopefully at another time I will be able to share more about those with you.

Emmanuel's Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah by Laurie Anne Thompson and illustrated by Sean Qualls is the true story of a boy born with only one leg in Ghana, West Africa. In West Africa, if you are born with a disability (physical or mental) you are shunned and thought to be useless.  Emmanuel's mother refused to believe that.  She always told Emmanuel that he could have anything he wanted, he only had to get it for himself.  So that is what Emmanuel did.  He learned to crawl and then hop.  He shined shoes to earn money.  When he became too heavy for his mother to carry, he hopped to school on one leg- 2 miles there and back. He played soccer and rode a bike- he did not let having only one leg stop him from doing anything!  He constantly met people telling him he could not do it, which only made him work harder.  When he was only 15, as his mother was dying, she told him to never give up.  That is when Emmanuel really began dreaming.  His new dream was to tell everyone that being disabled does not mean unable.  He made a plan to ride his bike across Ghana and back, with a shirt that said The Pozo or the disabled person.  His boldness, determination and grit encouraged others with disabilities to come out of their homes, some for the first time.  He proved to everyone that being disabled definitely does not mean unable.

What an inspirational story that everyone needs to hear.  Emmanuel has received many awards since his ride across Ghana (in 2001).  Oprah created a documentary about his life called Emmanuel's Gift (which he starred in) and most importantly the government of Ghana passed the Persons with Disability Act- which gives equal rights to people with disabilities in Ghana. I added two short clips to this post, one is when he received the EPSY award in 2005 and another that is an update on what Emmanuel is up to now.

Other 2016 Schneider Family Book Awards

Fish in a Tree by Linda Mullaly Hunt

The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Tessa Toten

Happy Reading!

Laura