Episcopal bishop criticized by President Trump has a 2-book deal with young readers publisher

Bishop gets book deal

Photo: TPenguin Young Readers via AP

This cover image released by Penguin Young Readers shows "We Can Be Brave: How We Learn To Be Brave in Life's Decisive Moments" by Mariann Edgar Budde. 

The Episcopal bishop who in January angered President Donald Trump has a deal for two books for young people. Both are based on the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde’s best-selling “How We Learn to Be Brave."

Penguin Young Readers announced Wednesday that it will release a young adult edition, adapted by novelist Bryan Bliss and titled “We Can Be Brave,” on Oct. 25. The picture book “I Can Learn to Be Brave," with illustrations by Holly Hatam, is scheduled for the summer of 2026.

"Every day, children and adolescents face challenges that require great courage — from taking their first steps to walking through the doors of a new school. With these books I hope to remind young readers that learning to be brave is simply part of life," Budde said in a statement. "The process involves taking risks, making mistakes, asking for help, and slowly gaining competence in whatever once felt impossible. We never stop learning to be brave, and some of our most formative experiences occur when we are young.”

Trump and Vice President JD Vance among others attended an inauguration prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral, where Budde noted that Trump had said he was saved by God from assassination. She urged he show mercy for migrants in the country illegally and for the LGBTQ+ community

“You have felt the providential hand of a loving God," she said. "In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.”

In comments later posted on social media, Trump called her a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater.”

Budde's “How We Learn to Be Brave” was first published in 2023, but it attracted wider attention after the January service.