New Picture Book About James Earl Jones Available Now

Knopf Books for Young Readers has recently published a new picture book about EGOT winner James Earl Jones.

Ode to Grapefruit: How James Earl Jones Found His Voice chronicles the actor's struggles and ultimate success in overcoming the stutter that he had as a child.

Throughout his career, Jones went on to star in countless stage and screen productions (including 21 Broadway shows), becoming one of a small number of lifetime "EGOT" (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winners. Jones's Tony Awards include Best Actor in a Play for The Great White Hope (1969) and Fences (1987), as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017. He has additionally won seven Drama Desk Awards and has been awarded the National Medal of Arts and the Kennedy Center Honor. He is also known for his voice performances as Darth Vader and Mufasa in Star Wars and The Lion King, respectively. 

Written by Kari Lavelle and illustrated by Bryan Collier, the new book was released on July 30, and is now available to purchase HERE.

Official Synopsis

Before there was Mufasa…Before there was Darth Vader… There was a young boy named James Earl Jones, who spoke with a stutter and dreaded having to talk in class. 

Whenever James tried to voice his thoughts, his words got stuck in his throat. But James figured out a solution for his shame: if he didn’t speak, he wouldn’t stutter. 

And so he was silent…until he wrote his own poem, Ode to Grapefruit, and found a love for poetry. 

Lyrical text, stunning art, and compelling backmatter about stuttering pair together for a remarkable picture book about how a boy who refused to speak for eight years learned to manage his stutter through poetry–and grew up to become an EGOT-winning performer with a voice few could forget.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos