Joey
The Story of Joe Biden
-
- £8.49
Publisher Description
“(Jill) Biden’s anecdotal portrait of her spouse’s early years spotlights his competitiveness and risk-taking…his role as a peacemaker, devoted brother, and defender of bullied peers…and reveals how…high school, when he became a star athlete and class president, paved the way for leadership roles in college and beyond.” —Publishers Weekly
“Young readers are likely to find inspiration and aspiration in young Joey as a relatable, athletic, and tenacious kid who grew into a civic leader.” —School Library Journal
Joey is the first ever picture book about the young life of Joe Biden, the 47th Vice President of the United States, and includes never before told family stories about the president-elect and former vice president’s childhood—written by Jill Biden, his spouse.
Joe Biden grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania, the oldest of four children. His parents always encouraged him and his siblings to be independent and strong. The family moved to Wilmington, Delaware, where at twenty-nine, Biden was elected one the youngest United States Senators ever elected. This is his story.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Biden's anecdotal portrait of her spouse's early years spotlights his competitiveness and risk-taking as a boy who "never refused a dare, even when it was dangerous." But she places equal emphasis on his role as a peacemaker, devoted brother, and defender of bullied peers an empathy nurtured by his own experience being mocked for stuttering. The narrative also underscores the influence of his parents' unwavering encouragement and belief in his ability to succeed, and reveals how Joe Biden's metamorphosis in high school, when he became a star athlete and class president, paved the way for leadership roles in college and beyond. Bates contributes softly focused, Rockwellian mixed-media illustrations that effectively chart time's passage. The author's tone is expectedly laudatory (she cites President Obama's proclamation that Joe Biden was "the best vice president America's ever had" and describes her husband as "always voted most liked' "), and a line about the figure being "not privileged" strikes an odd note. A concluding timeline concisely supplies details of the 2020 presidential hopeful's personal and political lives. Ages 4 8.
