An Israeli publisher last week unveiled the first three of a series of children’s books on the lives of American "Heroes of Liberty"— Ronald Reagan, economist Thomas Sowell, and Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
"These are true American leaders whose lives are unquestionably inspirational to children of all nations," Rotem Sella, owner and president of the 12-year-old Sella Meir publishing house, told Newsmax.
A reading of the three new illustrated biographies shows the young Ronald Reagan in prayer with his mother, Tom Sowell as a child of poverty who loved to read, and Amy Coney Barrett growing up in a large family and adopting two Haitian children as an adult.
By meshing the early lives of these achievers with their later years of consequence, Sella believes, the young reader is pointed in a direction of leadership and responsibility.
The chore has not been easy for the largest publishing house of conservative books in Israel.
"It’s a cultural phenomenon," Sella told Newsmax. "We have no conservative intellectual movement in Israel, no national radio network with talk shows, no conservative television network."
Working closely with Sella is a well-known American conservative, cultural commentator Bethany Mandel.
Sadly, Sella said, "No American illustrators will work with us. They’re too afraid."
The publisher said he was inspired to put out the children’s books on American heroes because he had seen children’s bookshelves "taken over by the liberals."
Recalling a bookshelf that made a particular impact on him, Sella said it had "50 biographies of Barack Obama and 20 with LGBQT themes."
Future volumes envisioned by Sella are children’s biographies of Gen. Douglas MacArthur, Alexander Hamilton, Mark Twain, and motion picture legend John Wayne.
"And we’re also planning a biography of Margaret Thatcher, so we are definitely open to ideas from other countries with heroes for liberty," he said.
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.