“The inspiration for this book came to me one afternoon as I watched my son, Hudson, playing with his toy bus. I was trying to keep pace with his three-year-old mind as he got deeper and deeper into a fantasy involving nothing more than a yellow plastic box and armless figurines. At least that’s what I saw. He saw frantic commuters rushing to catch the 77 local bus to Australia. He jumped in place, mouth open and slapping his knees, joyously reacting to a world I couldn’t see, but one powerfully present for him...”. – Jordan Matter

Photo: “Dancers Among Us”: Macys, NYC – Annmaria Mazzini. (Photo by Jordan Matter)

Porters carry the carcasses of a shark (L) and a Marlin (R) to the local market in Hamarweyne near the port of Mogadishu on the Indian Ocean coast on November 18, 2014 in the Somalia capital as fishermen bring in their catch. (Photo by Mohamed Abdiwahab/AFP Photo)

Tina Hitscherich surprises a police officer with a kiss during the NYC Pride Parade in New York, Sunday, June 26, 2016. With a moment of silence followed by the roar of motorcycles, New York City's gay pride parade kicked off Sunday, a celebration of barriers breached and a remembrance of the lives lost in the massacre at the gay nightclub in Orlando. (Photo by Seth Wenig/AP Photo)

Birds made of recycled tires are displayed in a shop located on the Panamerican highway near Catarina town, May 7, 2015. Salazar recycles used tyres to make bird figurines and sofas to sell in his shop located on the Panamerican highway. (Photo by Oswaldo Rivas/Reuters)

A young festivalgoer jumps to burst a bubble at Latitude Festival at Henham Park, Britain, July 22, 2021. (Photo by Peter Cziborra/Reuters)

Ivanka Trump, Advisor to the US President, attends the “Global Call To Protect Religious Freedom” conference during the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters, September 23, 2019. President Trump skipped the Climate Action Summit as the United States withdrew from the 2016 Paris Climate Agreemnet. (Photo by Anthony Behar/Sipa USA)

Hawk T1 aircraft of the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, perform a vertical loop during a practice display in Fitties, Greece on November 10, 2025. The team conducted the display practice as part of Exercise SpringHawk 2025. (Photo by AS1 Iwan Lewis/RAF)

Members of the grounds crew try to catch a cat that got loose on the field during the eighth inning between the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on August 2, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images)