Traveling Shoes The Story of Willye White, US Olympian and Long Jump Champion

Untold until now, here is the story of Black sprinter and long-jumper Willye B. White, who went from picking cotton as a child in Mississippi to competing and winning in the 1956 and 1964 Olympics.

Future Olympian Willye B. White was born in 1939 in Money, Mississippi—but money was exactly what she didn’t have. Abandoned by both her parents, she worked alongside her grandparents in the cotton fields. Willye had big dreams, though. So when her cousin noticed she was the fastest runner around, Willye jumped at the chance to put on her traveling shoes and run her way to better opportunities. And run Willye did, first for the Tennessee State Tigerbelles and then for the US Olympic team. Her struggles weren’t over though—time and again, Willye had to remind herself, “I believe in me,” whether she was running and jumping or witnessing the turmoil of the Civil Rights Movement.

Through Alice Faye Duncan’s signature combination of poetry and prose and Keith Mallett's lifelike illustrations, readers will be inspired by Willye White’s persistence and will learn how she contributed to Black progress with muscle and grit.

Alice Faye Duncan is the author of multiple children’s books, including Memphis, Martin, and the Mountaintop, which received a 2019 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor and five starred reviews. Her most recent books include Opal Lee and What it Means to Be Free, Evicted!, and Yellow Dog Blues, illustrated by Chris Raschka.

Keith Mallett is a painter, etcher, and ceramic artist, who has been nominated for the NAACP Image Award. In 2017, he created the Google doodle celebrating the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. He has multiple picture books, including Runaway: The Daring Escape of Ona Judge, and Curve & Flow: The Elegant Vision of L.A. Architect Paul R. Williams.