The true story of a first-of-his-kind man running for a one-of-a-kind office.
Early in 2019, I was offered the opportunity to illustrate the children’s book biography of Mayor Pete Buttigieg: the first openly Gay Presidential candidate who had recently entered the 2020 Democratic Primary. Like many others, I’ve never heard of Pete before his announcement, and I was curious what this young, audacious Mayor would bring to the national stage.
As an artist who’s built a career telling Queer stories, this was a unique opportunity to document a historic moment as it was unfolding. More importantly, I saw it as a chance to illustrate the kind of book that would have meant a lot to me as a closeted boy growing up in conservative, rural Idaho.
At its heart, this book is about a boy growing up with a desire to serve his community, who learns from his defeats and turns those lessons into future victories. On the way, he learns to accept his identity, and in turn is embraced by the community he serves. It’s a story whose themes go beyond any specific candidate or campaign, and one that I hope will resonate with many young readers.
This project gave me the opportunity to work with the talented author Rob Sanders and the amazing editor, Christian Trimmer. I’m so grateful for the experience to work with them, and all the kind, generous folks at Henry Holt Books.
Written by Rob Sanders - Illustrated by Levi Hastings
Published by Henry Holt
© 2020
48 pages