Becoming Ari / Kicks For A Cause by Christopher Stewart and Illustrated by Lala Stellune is a chapter book beginning a series on giving quietly and losing well.
Well suited for reading alone or WITH someone of any age, including ESL, and great for gifting to everyone, especially to a school, church library, or your local public library!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Lerner Publishing Group | Lerner Publications ™ via NetGalley. Thank you!

Kicks for a Cause is a beginner chapter book perfect for independent readers leveling up. I'm always excited to see series featuring Black boys especially written by Black men. And one thing that stands out to me is that this is a series that promotes giving back to your community. This book follows Ari who is a star runner on his school's team. The Secret Kindness Society that he is apart of is collecting shoes to send overseas when they realize people in their own community could use shoes as well. The author's note in the back talks about the real life story this was inspired by that hopefully inspires other children.


I received an arc from Lerner Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutly adore the illustrations in this book!!! I love the inclusivity and the very important meaning behing the story!