Who Is Cristiano Ronaldo? by James Buckley Jr. & Who HQ Review: A Soccer Icon Brought to Young Readers

Published by Penguin Workshop in July 2022 as part of the Who HQ Now series — a strand of the broader Who HQ franchise dedicated to current newsmakers and trending topics — this title tells the story of Cristiano Ronaldo from his origins in Madeira, Portugal, through more than two decades at the top of professional soccer. The book's central narrative engine is one of sport's great origin stories: at just twelve years old, Ronaldo was recruited to play for a professional club in mainland Portugal, some 600 miles from the island where he grew up. The publisher describes the book as tracing how that young boy, driven by a passion for soccer, "worked hard to become one of the most famous athletes of all time." Beyond his on-pitch achievements, the title also frames Ronaldo's broader celebrity — his standing, as the publisher puts it, as "one of the most famous people in the world — a true international superstar."

The Who HQ Now imprint is specifically designed to profile contemporary figures and fast-moving cultural moments, making it a natural home for a subject as current as Ronaldo. The wider Who HQ catalogue — which spans titles such as Who Is Pelé?, Who Is David Beckham?, What Is the World Cup?, and Who Is Megan Rapinoe? — gives this book a clear position within a sports-biography cluster aimed at young soccer fans. James Buckley Jr. Is a seasoned contributor to the series; the publisher notes he has written more than fifty books for children, including other Who HQ entries such as Who Was Ernest Shackleton?, which establishes his track record within this format and age range.

The combination of subject and author is well-matched. Ronaldo's story carries natural narrative drive — early sacrifice, geographic displacement, relentless self-improvement, and global achievement — all of which translate well into the short, chapter-based structure the Who HQ Now format uses to engage readers in grades 3–7. Gregory Copeland provides the illustrations that accompany the text, a consistent feature of Who HQ titles that helps younger readers stay anchored in the biographical narrative. Buckley Jr.'s extensive experience writing for this exact demographic, confirmed across more than fifty published children's books, positions him to shape the material into accessible prose. The series itself is a known and trusted brand for classroom and home reading, with a reliably consistent format that teachers, librarians, and parents can set expectations around.

The book's scope is by design narrow — 56 pages, aimed at a 7–9-year-old reading level, within a series format that prioritizes accessibility over depth. Older readers or those already knowledgeable about Ronaldo's career are unlikely to find new ground here; this is a gateway biography, not a comprehensive account. The Who HQ Now series is also, by its nature, a snapshot of a living subject's career at the time of writing, which means the book's coverage of Ronaldo's career achievements reflects what was known as of mid-2022. Readers wanting a full picture of everything that has followed will need to look beyond these pages. Additionally, some parents and educators may find the 56-page length — while appropriate for the target reading age — limits how deeply the book can explore the social and cultural dimensions of Ronaldo's global fame.

This title is squarely aimed at young soccer fans, ages 7–9, who are encountering Ronaldo's story for the first time and want a short, structured read they can finish independently. It fits naturally into classroom libraries, reading programs focused on contemporary role models, or as a companion read alongside other Who HQ sports titles. Fans of the broader Who HQ series who have already worked through the Pelé or Beckham entries will find the format immediately familiar. For parents or teachers looking to pair sports enthusiasm with independent reading practice, the book's design — biography, illustrations, and a subject of enormous global name recognition — makes it a straightforward and purposeful recommendation at its intended level.