His real name was John Chapman.
He grew apples.

But wait. So what?
Why should we remember him
and read about him
and think about him
and talk about him today,
more than two hundred years after he was born?
Why should we call him a hero?

Esme Raji Codell and Lynne Rae Perkins show us, in eloquent words and exhilarating pictures, why Johnny Appleseed matters now, perhaps more than ever, in our loud and wired and fast-paced world.