The Happiest Boy on Earth by Eddie Jaku and illustrated by Nathaniel Eckstrom, a picture book for readers 8+ is based on Eddie Jaku’s international bestseller, The Happiest Man on Earth. In this story, Eddie sensitively shares with his great grandchildren stories about his life, turning points, events and experiences that shaped the man he became and in a nondidactic way, life lessons he learned that culminated in him becoming the happiest boy on Earth and later the happiest man on Earth.
This story begins with Eddie at 101 years of age surrounded by his great grandchildren. The love and and respect they have for each other in the text and illustrations is palpable. The children are captivated by their Pepe’s childhood stories and ask questions about his life experiences. Their Pepe, more than happy to oblige and satisfy their curious minds, fondly recounts treasured memories prior to World War II when he lived in Leipzig with his parents, sister and grandmother. He then talks to his great grandchildren about Hitler and how life changed for him as a Jewish boy during this time. Eddie shares openly and honestly his feelings and emotions. He shares how his father gave him a new German identity, to protect him and sent him to a boarding school nine hours away from his home. His family valued education and Eddie talks in the story about the effect his education had on his life. He talks to his great grandchildren about Kristallnackt, the Night of Broken Glass. He talks about the darkest of times when his freedoms were taken from him and he lost faith in humanity when he was taken away to “a camp”. Eddie shares that this was a place where the guards were cruel, families were forbidden to stay together, disease was rampant, hunger was all too common and many people died in the camps.
Eddie talks about his despair, heartbreak and immense sadness, all in an accessible way for a young audience. He gives sage advice about the importance and power of hope.
Eddie tells his great grandchildren about the most unexpected gift that came from being in the camp. He goes on to talk about life after the war, more unexpected happenings and what he termed miracles.
Towards the end of the story Eddie shares the six character strengths that he has learned in life and that he attributes to making him the happiest boy on Earth.
There is also a collection of photos from Eddie’s private photo collection of his family included in the book.
The atmospheric illustrations enrich the narrative and provide more information about Eddie’s experiences.