While Ruth Spiro's fans include Gabby Giffords and Chance the Rapper, adults are not her main audience. The author has written more than 30 children's books, and over a million copies have been printed worldwide. With titles like Baby Loves Thermodynamics, Spiro's books have inspired kids to embrace science.
But her latest, One Small Spark, Spiro describes as "the book of my heart." The book-length poem is subtitled A Tikkun Olam Story, and explores how children can spark a flame of positivity. She writes, "Imagine everyone gathering sparks… repairing the world together."
While tikkun olam is a Jewish concept, she frames it as, "a human value. The book is about how we are similar."
The plot is told through illustrations by Russian-born New Yorker-cover artist Victoria Tentler-Krylov. Inspired by a girl fixing a playground swing, volunteers restore the entire playground, encouraged in turn by music and food made by others. This spread of goodwill is depicted by the flight of colorful birds.
After publishing more than a dozen science books for children, Spiro wanted a new writing challenge. "I enjoyed the process of writing with more lyrical language," she said. "It felt like I was stretching my wings. I made the text very spare, to leave space for the children reading it to enter it and interpret it themselves."
A Chicago native, Spiro lives in Deerfield. She worked at several advertising agencies, then coordinated a grant at DePaul University funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Writing, she said, will likely be her final career. "When I do signings, I see that I am having an effect on children," she reflected. "It's humbling."
The launch party for One Small Spark will be held on Sept. 22 at 2 p.m. at the Book Stall, 811 Elm St, Winnetka. To learn more about the party, visit
bit.ly/RuthSpiro.
