FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 14, 2018

MOUNT VERNON, NY—In 1992, Jerald LeVon Hoover became the published author of a

Young Adult title, one of a few books targeted toward young black boys ages 12 and up, My

Friend, My Hero. This novella has become a staple, as recommended reading in middle schools

across the country and around the world, an honor Hoover shares with a short list of African-

American male YA authors, among them Walter Dean Myers, Kevin Powell, and Kwame

Alexander. My Friend, My Hero, is celebrating its 25th Anniversary with a commemorative

edition that includes an addendum of book discussion questions and now also available a full

curriculum with a companion Student Workbook and Teacher’s Guide containing lesson plans

based on My Friend, My Hero.

Jerald LeVon Hoover was a young visionary. He recognized the depictions on news reports

and big screen Hollywood imagery were not self-defining and did not apply to those in his

circle. Jerald decided to take the charge of offsetting those narratives by writing an accurate tale of young,

black men who live and thrive in the inner-city, while fighting to remain focused, responsible, drug-free, and out

of trouble. At just 17 years old, he began writing My Friend, My Hero. It was the early 1980s.