About Ode to Grapefruit

Before legendary actor James Earl Jones was recognized for his memorable, smooth voice, he was just James–a stutterer who stopped speaking for eight years as a child…and ultimately found his voice through poetry.

A National Council of Teachers of English Honor Book

Before there was Mufasa…Before there was Darth Vader… There was a young boy names 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.