Desmond and the Very Mean Word by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Douglas Carlton Abrams, illustrated by A. G. Ford. Desmond is riding his new bicycle through the township when a group of boys shouts a very mean word at him. He shouts something back, and finds it does not help at all. Father Trevor helps him work out what forgiveness actually means — and what it costs.

Based on a true story from Archbishop Tutu's own childhood in South Africa. The mean word is never printed, which leaves room for a conversation. Suggested ages 6–9.