“You Can Do Anything, Tyrone“ is a fantastic fun tale of imagination and adventure from the award-winning comedian and actor, Sir Lenny Henry.
In the book, Tyrone is going to build a brilliant rocket ship out of building blocks and go on an adventure to the moon. There’s just one problem: the blocks won't work and Tyrone quickly loses his temper.
Luckily, Grandad Cleveland is on hand to show him that with self-belief, a bit of determination and a lot of imagination, there’s nothing Tyrone can’t do.
The book teaches children the importance of a growth mindset to help them reach their goals. It is an entertaining rhyming story filled with love, family and fun, and brilliantly brought to life by illustrator Salomey Doku.
Henry said the story was about the relationship between Tyrone and granddad Cleveland.
“It’s about a little boy who expresses his bond with his granddad because his mum is a nurse and his granddad is acting as primary carer and is basically looking after him,” said Henry.
He said that a lot of Tyrone came from when he was young and how what he had read had fuelled his imagination.
“Tyrone is lucky he’s got his granddad as I never had a granddad or grandma, and my mum and dad were working all the time and my mum was doing three jobs, so it felt like we never saw her.
“When we did, it was great as we always had food on the table and clothes on our backs. But she never read to us as she wanted to have her time after work, so for me to be able to create a universe where there’s a kid who has adventures with his granddad and he reads stories to him is lovely.”
The book was published in July and is available in book stores and online.