Way to Go! Baldwin student co-creates superhero book

A Baldwin student is hoping to inspire children to achieve their dreams through a new book she co-created with her mother about superheroes.

Isabella Brielle Ramcharitar, a fifth-grader at Steele Elementary School, recently co-created the children's book "Superhero Within Me: Uni: Never Give Up on Your Dreams!" The 15-page book, which is available for purchase online, is meant to encourage kids to achieve their dreams through superheroes who accomplish very human and career goals.

Isabella's mother, Sandhyia Gosine, wrote and developed the plot with guidance from Isabella, whose colored-pencil drawings illustrate the book. It is the first in a superhero series, they said.

"I started out with a sketch and then moved on to actually drawing, and it came out very, very good," Isabella said. Of seeing the finished product, she said: "It made me feel very happy and very accomplished."

The idea for the book began when the mother daughter  were reminiscing about bedtime stories that Gosine had told Isabella as a younger child. In those stories, Gosine would incorporate superheroes who had normal jobs, such as an FBI agent with special gadgets and powers.

"When we say anything is possible, we mean anything is possible, but gearing towards something that's more achievable," Gosine said.

Isabella is also a junior equestrian and plays the violin in her school's orchestra.

— MICHAEL R. EBERT

By Michael R. Ebert

michael.ebert@newsday.com

Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.