Free children's book on Dr. Li Wenliang, COVID-19 whistleblower

Children's book authors and illustrators seem to be getting inspired to write stories to educate children on the current coronavirus pandemic. I have featured some free children's books specifically about COVID-19 in this blog and even created a new tag to keep track of them. Check out the "Covid19 free books" tag to see all my posts about and download these free books.

Here's another free children's book on COVID-19. Though it is very different from the previous books featured here, which are mostly about educating children about the virus and what they can do to prevent it from spreading. This one is about Dr. Li Wenliang, the late doctor from Wuhan, China, who was one of the first doctors to discover the new disease.

Dr. Li and the crown-wearing virus is written by Francesca Cavallo, illustrated by Claudia Flandoli, with graphic design by Samuele Motta. It is published by Undercats, Inc., ©2020.



Download the book Dr. Li and the crown-wearing virus

"As usual, my goal is to find ways to keep children informed about what is happening while helping you have meaningful, honest conversations with them. Letting children be inspired by the heroes of our time can be a powerful reminder of the beauty of science, and of the importance of doing their homework!" said the author in the book.

Dr. Li Wenliang was an opthalmologist who worked in Wuhan Central Hospital, Wuhan, China. He was the first to notice that there seems to be a new disease infecting his patients, whose symptoms were similar to the SARS virus. He started to warn his colleagues, but he was summoned by police for spreading rumors and fear-mongering. He was diagnosed with coronavirus last January 30 and passed away on February 27, 2020. He was 33 years old.

His death has caused controversy in social media not just in China but all over the world.

The book tells Dr. Li's story and how health experts reacted to it, the possible source of the virus, and what important measures we should follow to prevent it from spreading. This book is a great memorial for the late doctor.

It also emphasizes the importance of frontliners such as doctors, health workers, scientists, and researchers in combating the virus. I like that the author is brave enough to write a children's story about a controversial topic, though it's best that young people also learn about it.

Out of the free children's books on COVID-19 I've read, this is the one I liked best. For other free children's books on the novel coronavirus, check out the Covid-19 free books tag in this blog.