Eleven

A graduate of Harvard University, Tom Rogers is an Emmy-winning screenwriter who has worked on both animated films and television series. Some of his most notable productions are Sofia the First, The Chicken Squad, and Elena of Avalor, featuring Disney’s first Latina princess. Rogers crafts diverse stories so all children can see themselves represented in television and film. Eleven, his first young adult novel, recounts the events surrounding the most devasting foreign attack on American soil. He wrote Eleven to make sure kids born after 2001 still learn about the September 11 attacks, evaluate its significance, and explore what constitutes heroism. He notes that as a child, he viewed courage as akin to saving someone from a burning building, but over time, he realized that “courage is sometimes being strong in the face of your fear, standing up quietly for what’s right, being responsible for someone else when you could turn your back and walk away” (Kingsbury Lee, Mira-Rose J. “Portrait of an Artist: Tom Rogers ’84.” The Harvard Crimson, 17 Nov. 2020). Rogers demonstrates these qualities in Alex, who learns to take responsibility for Nunu and Radar; Mac, who cares for the children despite his own fears; and Alex’s father, who helps many people on his trek home from Manhattan.