A rose pushes up through a crack in the sidewalk on a loud city street. Nobody planted it. Nobody watered it. It grows anyway. The first lesson in resilience, told in a way a child can hold onto.
New picture book
A Dream Defended
$10.99
Single copy, written by Mario West
In stock and ready to ship
Choose a pack
Need more than twenty five copies, or signed copies for an event? Email mario@mariowestfoundationinc.com.
Ships from GeorgiaOrders go out within two business days
Secure checkoutCard and digital wallet payments
Signed copiesAsk when you order for events
On a busy city street, in a crack nobody was watching, a rose decides to grow. The concrete does not move for it. The traffic does not slow down for it. It grows anyway, because something inside it refuses to quit.
That image is the one Mario West has carried since he was a seven year old in Douglas County telling people he would play in the NBA. A Dream Defended turns it into a story a child can hold: your dream does not need perfect conditions, it needs you to protect it.
It was written to be read out loud, in a classroom circle, at bedtime, or in a gym full of elementary students right before Mario steps up to speak.
Families
A bedtime story that gives parents and grandparents a simple way to talk about trying again.
Classrooms
A short read aloud for elementary teachers, counselors, and librarians building character lessons.
Ministries
Children's church and youth programs that pair faith with perseverance in language kids understand.
- Best for ages four and up, and for any reader who likes a picture book
- Pairs with Mario's author visits and elementary assemblies
- Works as a gift for graduations, birthdays, and end of year awards
- Orders ship within two business days from Georgia
- Flat rate shipping of $6.95 inside the United States
- Free shipping on orders over $75
- School and organization purchase orders are accepted, ask before you order
- Damaged or incorrect shipments are replaced, contact mario@mariowestfoundationinc.com within fourteen days
- Signed copies can be arranged for award nights and events
Bring the author
Read alouds and school visits
Mario reads A Dream Defended with elementary students, talks about the rose and the concrete in language they understand, and signs copies afterward. Schools usually book the visit on the day the books arrive.
