Coronavirus: A Book for Children

Illustrated by Axel Scheffler 

COPING with a pandemic is hard enough for adults… so imagine how frightening and complex it must appear to children. 

Award-winning independent children’s book publisher, Nosy Crow, know a thing or two about writing books for young readers so, in collaboration with Axel Scheffler, illustrator of the much-loved Gruffalo books, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, they have put together an e-book to explain the coronavirus in the simplest and gentlest of terms.

Available free for anyone to read on screen or to print out, the book answers key questions about the coronavirus and the measures that have been taken to control it in a language ideal for five to nine year olds. 

What is the coronavirus, how do you catch the coronavirus, what happens if you catch the coronavirus, why are people worried about catching the coronavirus, is there a cure for the coronavirus, why are some places we normally go to closed, what can I do to help and what’s going to happen next?

IN THE PICTURE: Axel Scheffler

Written by staff within the publishing company, the book has had expert input from Professor Graham Medley of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine who acted as a consultant, and the company also had advice from two head teachers and a child psychologist.

Nosy Crow says it wants to make sure that the book is accessible to every child and family totally free of charge. However, at the back of the book, the company suggests that if families find the book useful they might make a donation to the health service at: https://www.nhscharitiestogether.co.uk/

Kate Wilson, managing director of Nosy Crow, said: ‘We were very aware that many parents and carers are struggling to explain the current extraordinary situation to children, many of whom are frightened and confused. We thought that the best thing we could do would be to use our skills to produce a free book to explain and, where possible, reassure children. We hope it helps answer difficult questions in difficult times.’ ​

Professor Medley said: ‘This pandemic is changing children’s lives across the globe and will have a lasting impact on us all. Helping children understand what is going on is an important step in helping them cope and making them part of the story – this is something that we are all going through, not something being done to them.  This book puts children IN the picture rather just watching it happen, and in a way that makes the scary parts easier to cope with.’ 

You can download a copy of the book here: https://delivr.com/2fa8e