The biography I chose was The Express: The Ernie Davis Story. It's about an inspiring and heroic African-American football player. Robert C. Gallagher wrote this book. Ernie Davis died of leukemia at just 23 years old. (Gallagher, 151). Although his life was short, he treated others with dignity, grace and compassion. The life he led made him a hero. He was considered by professionals in his field to be one of the best running backs ever. He was most famous for being the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy (Gallagher, 1). Davis was born in New Salem, Pennsylvania, on December 14, 1939 (Gallagher, 15). His parents were separated and his father was killed in an automobile accident before Davis was born. When Ernie was born, his father was deceased and his mother struggled to raise him. She found she couldn't care for him alone. When Ernie was about a year old, his mother sent him to live at her parents' house (Gallagher, 19). His grandparents, Willie and Elizabeth Davis, had twelve children. Willie worked hard as a coal miner and Elizabeth was a housewife who took care of the children. They raised all the children, including Ernie, the same way and with the same love. Ernie called his grandparents Mum and Dad because he was treated just like the other children. He learned to be generous and grateful by living in a large family. His grandparents also taught Ernie to have a strong, trusting relationship with God (Gallagher, 20). Ernie grew up playing with his older uncles. They spent a lot of time together and he learned many important lessons about sports from them. When Ernie got ready to enter high school, his mother asked him to come back to her. Ernie had a tough time... mid-paper... and showed he had less than a year to live (Gallagher, 124). Ernie underwent chemotherapy and spent two months in and out of hospitals. On October 4, 1962 the doctor finally explained to him the extent of his illness. He also told Davis that he could continue playing football if his disease went into remission. Surprisingly, his leukemia went into remission. His coach made the difficult decision to keep him on the sidelines (Gallagher, 151). Ernie never complained about his illness. He remained confident that he could defeat the disease and refused any mercy offered by others. He was always kind and never complained to the people who helped him. Finally, after all his struggles, on May 18, 1963, Ernie Davis died (Gallagher, 124). 160 “Ernie was one of the best football players, but above all the best gentleman I ever knew”(Gallagher,167).