ValueTales

ValueTales is a series of simple biographical children's books published primarily by the now-defunct Value Communications, Inc. in La Jolla, California. The books were written by Dr. Spencer Johnson and Ann Donegan Johnson, and illustrated by Stephen Pileggi. Thirty books were authored by Ann Donegan Johnson from 1977 to 1997. Fifteen books were authored by Spencer Johnson from 1977 to 1988.

Each book gave a simplified and fictionalized biography of a historical figure as an allegory, illustrating the value of a positive characteristic. Each volume was a white pictorial glossy hardback book around 60 pages long with a brightly colored cartoon of the figure, along with some anthropomorphic item or animal that would narrate the subject's life throughout the book.

The title of each book would be The Value of x: The story of y , where x is the characteristic being exemplified and y is the subject (i.e. The Value of Determination: The Story of Helen Keller). Early editions of the books used a different format: The Valuetale of y: The value of x . So for instance the first edition of the Helen Keller book was called The ValueTale of Helen Keller : the value of determination

The books were quite popular in homes, elementary school libraries, pediatrics offices, and sunday schools across North America. Most of the ValueTales books are out of print. In October 2010, Simon & Schuster Children's Books published anthologized five of the ValueTales books in an edition with new illustrations by Dan Andreason.

Books

Value	Subject	Author	Publication Date	ISBN	Notes
Adventure	Sacagawea	Ann Donegan Johnson	1981 February 1	ISBN 0-916392-59-7
Facing a Challenge	Fox, Terry	Ann Donegan Johnson	1985 November 1	ISBN 0-7172-8134-5
Saving	Franklin, Benjamin	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1978 August	ISBN 0-916392-17-1
Imagination	Dickens, Charles	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1977 December	ISBN 0-916392-15-5
Foresight	Thomas Jefferson	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1980 February	ISBN 0-916392-42-2
Kindness	Elizabeth Fry	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1977 March	ISBN 0-916392-09-0 ISBN 0-916392-04-X
Creativity	Thomas Edison	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi (Illustrator)	1984 November	ISBN 0-916392-72-4
Boldness	Captain Cook	Johnson, Ann Donegan Johnson	1986 June	ISBN 0-7172-8188-4
Positive Attitude	Michael Landon	Ann Donegan Johnson	1992 January 1	ISBN 0-7172-8263-5
Understanding	Margaret Mead	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi (Illustrator)	1979 June	ISBN 0-916392-37-6
Dedication	Albert Schweitzer	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1980 February	ISBN 0-916392-44-9
Leadership	Winston Churchill	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi (Illustrator)	1989 August	ISBN 0-86679-046-2
Charity	Paul-Emile Léger	Ann Donegan Johnson	1983	ISBN 0-7172-1884-8
Courage	Jackie Robinson	Spencer Johnson	1977 August	ISBN 0-916392-12-0
Believing in Yourself	Louis Pasteur	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1977 March	ISBN 0-916392-06-6 ISBN 0-916392-01-5	aka Believing
Determination	Helen Keller	Ann Donegan Johnson	1977 March	ISBN 0-916392-02-3 ISBN 0-916392-07-4
Helping	Harriet Tubman	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1980 February	ISBN 0-916392-41-4
Respect	Abraham Lincoln	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1977 June	ISBN 0-916392-14-7
Friendship	Jane Addams	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi (Illustrator)	1980 February	ISBN 0-916392-45-7
Fairness	Nellie Bly	Ann Donegan Johnson	1977 December	ISBN 0-916392-16-3
Giving	Beethoven	Ann Donegan Johnson	1979 June	ISBN 0-916392-34-1
Humility	Mother Teresa	Ann Donegan Johnson	1993	ISBN 0-7172-8316-X
Patience	Wright Brothers	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1977 March	ISBN 0-916392-08-2
Honesty	Confucius	Steve Pileggi, Spencer, M.D. Johnson	1979 June	ISBN 0-916392-36-8
Tenacity	Maurice Richard	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1984 June	ISBN 0-7172-8143-4
Love	Johnny Appleseed	Ann Donegan Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1979 June	ISBN 0-916392-35-X
Discipline	Alexander Graham Bell	Ann D. Johnson, Steven Pileggi (Illustrator)	1985 April	ISBN 0-7172-1887-2 ISBN 0-7172-8176-0	aka Self-Discipline, June 1985
Responsibility	Ralph Bunche	Ann Donegan Johnson	1978 November	ISBN 0-916392-29-5
Curiosity	Christopher Columbus	Spencer Johnson	1977 November	ISBN 0-916392-13-9
Caring	Eleanor Roosevelt	Ann D. Johnson, Steve Pileggi (Illustrator)	1977 July	ISBN 0-916392-11-2
Overcoming Adversity	Wilma Rudolph	Ann Donegan Johnson	1996	ISBN 0-7172-8731-9
Dignity	Arthur Ashe	Ann Donegan Johnson	1994	ISBN 0-7172-8339-9
Sharing	Mayo Brothers	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1978 November	ISBN 0-916392-28-7
Humor	Will Rogers	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1977 March	ISBN 0-916392-05-8
Conviction	Cesar Chavez	Ann Donegan Johnson	1995	ISBN 0-7172-8482-4
Compassion	Florence Nightingale	Ann Donegan Johnson	1987 July	ISBN 0-7172-8482-4
Commitment	Jacques Cousteau	Ann Donegan Johnson	1998	ISBN 0-7172-8820-X
Optimism	Amelia Earhart	Ann Donegan Johnson	1997	ISBN 0-7172-8780-7
Fantasy	Hans Christian Andersen	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1980 Feb	ISBN 0-916392-43-0
Truth and Trust	Cochise	Spencer Johnson, Steve Pileggi	1980 Jan	ISBN 0-307-69957-9
Learning	Marie Curie	Spencer Johnson, Ann D. Johnson	1979 June	ISBN 0-686-98175-8
Laughter	Lucille Ball	Ann Donegan Johnson	1990 May	ISBN 0-7172-8217-1
Imagination	Jim Henson	Ann Donegan Johnson	1992	ISBN 978-0717282531

External links

• ValueTales.com
• Dan Andreasen, children's book illustrator