Mighty Mara - by Carina Ho & Jesse Byrd

About the Book

"Welcome to Sametown where everyone and everything is ... well ... the same. Except our protagonist: Mighty Mara! She's a little different. While her classmates sign up and ready their performances for the school talent show, Mara musters up the courage to also sign up--but unlike the others, she's going to dance, dance, dance! The only problem is, everyone encourages her not to! Mara won't let her classmates' heckling and teacher's dissuading rock her spirit. She forges on, and by the night of the talent show, she just may shake some new life into her muted town"--

Book Synopsis

A young girl aspires to dance despite her disability.

Welcome to Sametown where everyone and everything is...well...the same. Except Mara! She's a little different. She' bright. She's sunny. And, unlike her classmates who are all planning on performing a similar magic show act at the school talent show, she is going to dance, dance, dance! One problem: everyone in Sametown - her classmates, her teacher--they all think she shouldn't do it. And it's not just (it seems) because dancing isn't the status quo in Sametown...It's because they just don't believe in Mara. Mara won't let their dissuading and even their heckling rock her spirit, though. She's Mighty Mara, and she's about to shake she some new life into her muted town. In the most surprising and beautiful of ways.

Review Quotes

MIGHTY MARA
By Carina Ho and Jesse Byrd; illustrated by Monia Paola Rodriguez
Kirkus Reviews
January 6, 2023

A girl hopes to dazzle the crowd at a talent show in Ho and Byrd's debut picture book.

Mara dresses more colorfully than other residents of conformist Sametown, who all wear bland polo shirts. She's planning to perform a dance routine at an upcoming talent show where everyone else is doing magic tricks. However, her teacher discourages her. Mara's mother, however, knows exactly what to say to give her child courage. Right before her performance, it's revealed that Mara uses a wheelchair; the stage isn't accessible, and she must emotionally ground herself before asking for assistance. The book takes care to show that Mara's difference from others in Sametown isn't only her wheelchair use, but also her creativity and inventiveness. Co-author and dancer Ho discusses her own wheelchair use in an author's note, which brings authenticity to the story. Rodriguez's pleasing full-color illustrations are refreshingly diverse, featuring characters with varying skin tones; Mara and her mother are portrayed as Asian. The story flows nicely, but the talent show stakes are a bit unclear; although the audience and emcee are seemingly blown away, Mara doesn't even place. Discussion questions will spark conversations about uniqueness and unpack biases about people who use wheelchairs.

A thoughtful, well-illustrated work about pursuing goals.

Link: https: //www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/carina-ho/mighty-mara/

About the Author

Carina Ho (Author)
Carina Ho is dancer and musician who performs under the moniker ONIKHO. Having trained in dance and music since childhood, Carina joined AXIS Dance Company, a physically integrated dance company that casts dancers with and without disabilities, shortly after sustaining a spinal cord injury. Over the next two years she toured the United States with them until she was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship, for which she relocated to Montevideo, Uruguay to teach at the national dance conservatory El SODRE. During this time, Carina also began developing her music project, which melds her influences of classical, blues, and electronic music. Today she primarily tours as a musical artist, often collaborating with other disabled artists to promote the visibility of diverse bodies in the arts.

Jesse Byrd (Author)
Jesse Byrd is an international award-winning children's book author and the youngest NPR Board member. At 6'8", Jesse pivoted from playing basketball at UCSB to pursue his passion for storytelling. After working at Google in Silicon Valley and later EY in Dubai as Director of Communications for Middle East and North Africa, Jesse turned all of his energy toward his deepest love: making stories for youth and families with a focus on supporting diverse creators and #own voices material. He's written six children's books and helped produce over 40 others as an editor, art director, and publishing consultant. Jesse is based in Los Angeles, CA.