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3rd April 2021
07:30am BST
New Irish children's book, The Naughty Little Germ, tells the story of a very bold ‘germ’ called Covid who arrives on planet Earth and starts causing havoc by trying to make as many people sick as possible.
Everywhere he went, the germ left his dirty footprints behind him, but as they were so tiny, nobody could see them. These footprints started making everyone ill. Eventually, the people of the world came up with a simple plan to stop the germ – they decided to stay at home, be kind, show love and make sure to wash their hands with soap and water to clean away the naughty little footprints.
The Naughty Little Germ is written by Irish businesswoman and stage-school owner Alison Vard Miller, and aims to educate kids about Covid-19, and act as a guide for parents when explaining the concept of the disease and its transmission to children. As a stage school teacher who interacted with children daily, Alison noticed the anxiety and confusion among the children as they tried to understand and adjust to Covid-19 life. As a result of this, The Naughty Little Germ was born. The engaging tale is beautifully illustrated by Bilal Karaca, and uses age-appropriate language to outline what is going on in the world today in a fun, colourful yet informative manner. With an emphasis on the importance of working as a team to get rid of the virus, the book also gives a positive and hopeful outlook to children for a ‘post-Covid’ world.
Eventually, the book explains, the Naughty Little Germ gets bored and decides to go home to his own planet and life slowly returns to a ‘new normal’ for people everywhere.
The aim of the book is to show that if we all work as a team and are kind to each other, we can beat The Naughty Little Germ.
“Covid may have left his naughty little footprints which we don’t forget, but the people of the world left footprints of love and kindness everywhere.”
Speaking about the launch, author Alison Vard Miller explains:
“I have worked with children for nearly 16 years and when I was forced to close ’The Miss Ali Stage School’ due to the pandemic, it got me thinking about what an unreal and unsettling time it is for children as they come to terms with the day-to-day changes in their lives. I wanted to write a book that gives a positive and hopeful outlook to children for a ‘post-Covid-19’ world. The book explains the pandemic in a child-friendly way and I see it as very much a guide for parents and guardians on how to explain the concept of germs and transmission to children.”
The Naughty Little Germ is available in most Dunnes Stores, Tesco and Circle K outlets nationwide and retails at €9.99.
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