Admiral William H. McRaven Collaborates With Daughter Kelly on Sequel to Best-Selling Picture Book

NEW YORK — Admiral William H. McRaven is collaborating with his daughter Kelly McRaven on the sequel to his best-selling picture book “Skipper the Seal,” which is based on his longtime passion for being a superhero.

Little Brown Books for Young Readers announced Monday that the McRavens’ “Be a Hero with Skipper the Seal” will be published on March 11, 2025. With illustrations by Howard McWilliam, the new book follows Skipper’s adventures as requested by President of the United States to recruit a team of heroes.

“When I was a boy in Texas, I dreamed of being a superhero and saving the world,” the admiral said in a statement. “But I thought you needed to have special powers. When I grew up, I discovered that true heroes are all around us and the only power they needed was to believe in themselves.”

Kelly McRaven said in a statement that “Some of my favorite memories are of my dad reading to me before bed and sharing life lessons. He taught me that we can all be heroes if we give a little of ourselves every day.”

McRaven, who retired in 2014, led the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command when a team of Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011. Two years earlier, he led the rescue of Richard Phillips, a ship captain captured by Somali pirates in 2009. He was later portrayed by Tom Hanks in the 2013 film “Captain Phillips.”

McRaven’s other books include “The Hero’s Code: Lessons Learned from Lives Well Lived” and “Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations.”