A Service of UA Little Rock
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Author Dedicates Book About Famous Arkansans For School-Aged Children

Steven Teske

A book dedicated for school-aged children just came out earlier this spring.

Natural State Notables features 21 people from Arkansas who became famous.

They include U.S. president Bill Clinton, Walmart creator Sam Walton, as well as a woman who saved Arkansas Children’s Hospital from closing during the Great Depression.

Author Steven Teske said he was inspired to write something for kids.

Credit butlercenter.org
Author Steven Teske

“We really need a book for children that tells them about people in Arkansas. Something that a 4th grade levels. Something that can be used in classrooms.”

Teske said the 21 Arkansas notables took different paths in life but they all became famous from doing what they love to do and doing it well.

When asked which of the notables would Teske like to have a cup of coffee with, Teske said, “I’d love to get them all in a room together and just sit and listen to them talk to each other. I think that’d be more fun than just one-on-one but see them interact.”

Teske thanked the people who have helped him in getting the book done.

“I had a test reader home too, my daughter Olivia. And she’s 10 years old. So, she is right at the target age and was able to do the reading and let me know what didn’t make sense, what word she didn’t know, what sentences were too hard and she was a really big help in getting the whole thing pulling together,” said Teske.

Steven Teske is an archivist at the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, part of the Central Arkansas Library System, and he teaches history at the Arkansas State University.

He is originally from Chicago but moved to Arkansas in 2003.