You're on Your Way, Teddy Roosevelt

by Judith St. George, Matt Faulkner

Before Teddy Roosevelt became famous as a statesman, naturalist, colonel in the Spanish-American War, and twenty-sixth president of the United States, he was a young boy called Teedie who had wonderful adventures with his brother and sister and even started a museum in his attic. But he also struggled with terrible asthma. Overcoming his illness was the major battle of his young life . . . and his determination to make himself strong and healthy set the course for his amazing accomplishments to come.
First in a planned series of picture storybooks about "turning points" in the lives of the young Presidents, this book is written by the in-comparable author of So You Want to Be President? and whimsically illustrated by Matthew Faulkner.

Genres: Picture Books, Biography, History, Nonfiction, Childrens

48 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was our favorite of the three picture books we read about Theodore Roosevelt. The focus on his childhood makes him relatable to young children today and it's engaging to watch him work hard to overcome his physical ailments by strengthening his body while also expanding his mind through a love of books -- a refreshing balance. We certainly see the very upper-class advantages that Roosevelt received, yet he still struggled with painful asthma and all the love and money his parents could provide couldn't cure him unless he worked hard himself (also, modern readers will likely shudder at some of the medical advice received, such as giving young Teedie cigars to "help his breathing"). The book also does a good job of showing how Teedie's love of nature and wildlife was real, yet also a product of its time -- as with Audubon, the number of birds he killed for his personal collection is hard to read about by this modern-day animal-lover. Even so, the book helps us understand the aspects of Roosevelt's childhood that helped pave the way for his adventurous adult life and desire to help preserve America's wild spaces. The story ends with Roosevelt entering Harvard college. (The back matter includes a brief overview of the rest of Roosevelt's life and a Bibliography.)
"By his own strong will, Teedie had at last won the battle for his body. It wasn't as if he never coughed and wheezed with asthma or fell sick again, because he did. And he wasn't a muscle-bound star athlete either.
"But from his first workout in Wood's Gymnasium he had been determined to control his asthma and illness rather than letting his asthma and illness control him. And he had. [...] he had proven to himself -- and everyone else -- that he had taken charge of his own life."

[Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is do well written with beautiful illustrations that will hold your students attention! This book covers the childhood of President Teddy Roosevelt, “Teedie” was his childhood name.

I read this to my 9 year old son as part of our study of the 1800’s. I actually remembered this book from the last time I read it to my older kids a few years ago and borrowed it again from my library. This would be an excellent book to add to your home library!

[Kelley Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Judith St. George. This is my go to for first grade with Teddy Roosevelt (though the one where he is with John Muir is a contender to replace it). I love how she makes the young Roosevelt accessible for young readers. They stay with me through most of what is a very long book for six-year-olds. They almost all know someone with asthma, and find it hilarious that he would be told to try smoking as a cure. Also great for teaching self-determination and grit.

[Jacob L · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting biography that focused on Teddy's early life. It informed about his many journey that he had with his family. It painted a picture of the struggles he faced with his asthma, nearsightedness, and small size.
What I really enjoyed about this was how relatable Teddy can be to a lot of young kids. He was a kid that had a lot of problems, but through hard work, he was able to overcome his problems and even became president!

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a lot about Teddy Roosevelt as a young man and as president, but not a lot of books take most of the book talking almost exclusively about his childhood and brushing on the adulthood, presidency etc! Nicely done with good pictures! I enjoyed this one!!

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful biography of Teddy Roosevelt's childhood and the physical trials he overcame with perseverance and hard work. Truly an inspiring read!

[Melissa Ganka-Collins · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice addition to my storybook bios.

[Patrice Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

The artwork is phenomenal.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative about Teddy's earlier life. It did mention things in his later life, but the author completely left out that Teddy set aside land for Yosemite and all his contributions to nature.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. This book would fall under the category of a junior book, biography.
2. This book is a biography about Teddy Roosevelt’s childhood. Born weak, Roosevelt had a tough childhood plagued with asthma and sickness. This book shows that even weak children who don’t quite fit in can still do amazing things in life.
3. critique
a. The most outstanding aspect of this book is the storyline.
b. The author took a small part of Teddy Roosevelt’s history and chose to focus on it. This gives a chance for children to connect with a person who had such an amazing history and influence on our country. Showing his weaknesses enables people to relate to him and realize that they are able to do anything that they set their mind to.
c. Asthma is a common ailment for many children. The author took the time to show the suffering that Teddy experienced as a child and all of the remedies that his parents tried. They moved to the country, took a trip, and created a gymnasium in their home.
4. a curriculum connection
This book could be related to the social studies curriculum. It shows an example of life in the early twentieth century. You could also examine the geography of his trip overseas. How long would it take to get there by boat?

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, I absolutely loved the illustrations that accompanied this book. The artist manages to capture a myriad of human facial expressions in response to "Teedie" and his antics. St. George takes us through the childhood of Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt, where we're shown the gumption that made him into one of our more fondly remembered presidents. The book is divided into small chapters, which I think helps children make that transition from picture books to more word-focused texts and also helped to differentiate different points in his life. The story itself, though, helps children see that, in some cases, hard work and determination can win out over their struggles. But, like "Teedie" shows us, sometimes you need outside help (Papa) to be the best you can be. I think this would be a great book to read before diving into TDR's presidency, no matter the age range, in order to better understand where he was coming from when he passed all of those reform bills.

[Jodi Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, well-written story about the childhood of Teddy Roosevelt. I enjoyed sharing this with my children--Teddy's love of learning is contagious! Learning of his efforts to live life well in spite of his asthma was inspirational as well. And, to top it off, the illustrations are so engaging. Great book to read as a family!

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't know that Teddy Roosevelt was so sickly as a child until I read this book. Any similarly sickly child reading this will feel hope that they, too, may outgrow their poor health and have the adventures that he did. Great illustrations!

[Shelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastically illustrated and informative picture book about one of our most colorful presidents, Teddy Roosevelt. Judith St. George focused on Roosevelt’s physical struggles and passions of his youth which laid the foundation for the determined unyielding man he would later become.

[Sandybear76]

Great illustrations. A good story that tells fo Teddy struggles with his asthma and other illnesses but he is determined to be stronger and not sick all the time. He spends time in a gym then in his gym at home. He takes trips to Europe in hopes that the fresh air would help his asthma.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cole says this is a 4-5 star book. It was an interesting look at Teddy Roosevelt's life when he was a boy. Neither of us ever knew he had asthma and was sickly as a kid. The book jacket said that this was the first in a series so I think we'll check out other books, too.

[babyhippoface · Rating 4 out of 5]

St. George has created a terrific little series of American history biographies for kids (Abe Lincoln and George Washington so far).

[Rebecca Ferguson]

This book tells the life story of Theodore Roosevelt. (Biography)

[Erica Eyestone]

Really like this book. Great pictures with good general story of Teddy Roosevelt's life.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only covers Roosevelt's life up until Harvard. Some appealing information for children, but Don Brown's treatment is more complete.

[Jarm Boccio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another well-written and engaging PB of Teddy Roosevelt, but this time focusing on his childhood. Bully book!