Cover of The Wonderhearted Hero, written by Tara L. Stone and illustrated by Jason D. McIntosh: a boy in a feathered helmet and pink cape rides a blue winged dragon through an arch of purple trees.

You can be brave without feeling brave.

Leo doesn’t feel very brave. So he makes a wish — a brave wish. What happens next is a journey he never imagined.

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Follow Leo from the wishing flower to a door he’s never seen before.

Interior spread: Leo sits glumly in the grass with a stick, watching ants. Text reads, "Leo wasn't feeling brave. He didn't want to play. Or talk. Or do anything at all. So, he sat in the grass and watched the little bugs wander by."

Interior spread: Leo lies on his back in the grass while a dandelion wishing flower stands atop a green hill. Text reads, "That's when he saw it. A wishing flower! Leo picked it, closed his eyes and whispered… 'I wish I was brave!'"

Interior spread: a close-up of Leo blowing the wishing flower as its seeds swirl through bands of turquoise, yellow, and pink. Text reads, "He blew on the flower. The little seeds danced into the air, and everything twirled like magic around him."

Interior spread: Leo peeks out from behind a tree in a misty forest as dandelion seeds drift toward a small green door set into a giant tree trunk. Text reads, "The seeds drifted between the trees, as if they were showing him the way… He felt something inside him say, 'GO, SEE.'"

01/04, Spread 1

Our Story

Wonderhearted began during my son Bennett’s cancer treatment. Along the way, I learned a lot from him, but two things helped shape Wonderhearted: kids are braver than they feel, and imagination is a kind of strength.

Those ideas sparked Wonderhearted, and The Wonderhearted Hero is where I’ve started. It’s a story I hope to put in the hands of newly diagnosed families when they need it most.

— Tara L. Stone, Bennett’s Mom

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Bennett blowing on a dandelion in a sunlit park.

Leo’s journey reminds us that even the most unlikely heroes possess extraordinary strength, and that bravery doesn’t always mean feeling fearless.

Tyler Severance, MDPediatric Hematologist/Oncologist

Meet the Creators

Tara L. Stone

Author

Tara is a product designer, TEDx speaker, and mom of two boys in Missouri. Her son Bennett’s imagination during cancer treatment inspired her to write The Wonderhearted Hero.

Meet Tara

Jason D. McIntosh

Illustrator

Award-winning author-illustrator from New Hampshire. When he’s not doodling, he’s adventuring through the woods with his wife and six kids.

Meet Jason

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