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“Books for Bravery” was inspired by  my (Isaac Braverman)'s father,  Jeffrey Braverman. He passed away in April of 2019 due to a short, but hard fought battle with cancer. This tragedy caused my mother, two sisters, and I, difficulty finding hope in such an uncertain and devastating time. I had trouble envisioning a future without my father. However, I reflected upon the message he left for me in his last days, “you are my legacy”. I then thought back to the smile that flashed upon my dad’s face when talking of his profession, reproductive immunology. More simply, my dad gave thousands of women the greatest gift they could ever receive, the name “mom”.  While I am no doctor, I believe that I can give “life” to children in my own way. I recall late nights, way past bedtime, being in the computer room of my house with my dad. I would sit on the armrest of my dad’s work chair, hovering over his back, together creating our own fun and unique story. They were random, silly, and most definitely creative. It was then that my dad figured out that I was a writer. When I began to draft stories on my own, as soon as I finished what I believed to be a masterpiece, I would run to my dad to read it to him. My stories brought my dad joy from when I was 5 years old, all the way until I was 12, right before his passing. Although cancer won its war with my dad, I know the stories I wrote for him had inspired and pushed him to keep going. While I wish I could read just one more story to him, it is now my calling to continue my dad’s legacy and provide children with this same hope and motivation to never give up. This resonated with me very deeply, and is crafting my path to give back to pediatric cancer patients. My story is meant to impact these children in ways where they are filled with hope and most importantly; bravery. My goal is to put a smile on their faces, or give them a good laugh, because nothing is more important than a moment of happiness during a long and hard journey.  In our stories, brave characters face tough times but never give up. By reading, kids learn they're strong too. Every page turns into a reminder: you can face anything and keep fighting. Our stories are like secret messages of power, showing that, just like the characters, they can be heroes in their own lives.