Maite Engel de Abreu, a student at Fairview Bridge of Allan, has become a published author at the age of 7. Her book Covi the little coronavirus, is available to purchase on Amazon now.
FAIRVIEW Bridge of Allan student, Maite Engel de Abreu, helped write and illustrate the children’s book Covi the little coronavirus with her mum Pascale Engel, who is a child psychologist and scientist with a Ph.D. in child development. The book aims to explain the coronavirus pandemic in a child-friendly way and explore why the world has changed so much so quickly.
What is that coronavirus anyway? Why is everything so different now? What exactly do I need to pay attention to? And why am I perhaps sadder than usual? These questions are all answered by Covi the little coronavirus, the character that Maite and her mum created to help explain the coronavirus pandemic.
Publishing a book was a big dream for Maite and she wrote Covi the little coronavirus with her mum after having the idea to explain the pandemic to other children. Maite got the whole family involved. Francisco, Maite’s little brother helped her come up with the idea of the character, and her dad Carlos Tourinho de Abreu, a published author himself, helped translate it and guided her in the book editing process. The book is available to buy in English, Luxembourgish, German, French, Portuguese, Polish, and Arabic.
Maite attends Fairview Bridge of Allan International School, signed copies of her book are available in the school library and Maite will be signing copies herself during Fairview’s Open Day on the 27th of October 3.30-6.30 pm. Maite’s family is originally from Luxembourg and Brazil, they moved to Stirling whilst her mum Pascale does research at Stirling’s centre for Child Wellbeing and Protection, Stirling University. She is working with Scottish researchers on the effects of the pandemic on children’s mental health. In her research, she found that many children were developing fears during the pandemic which negatively affected their mental health.
”I wanted to make a book for children about a ‘nice’ coronavirus. So that children are not afraid. You have to watch out and protect yourself, but you don’t have to be scared.
My daddy has published several books and I wanted to make a ‘real’ book too. It was a lot of work! I’m glad I did not give up. I was so happy to hold my finished book in my hands.” said Maite.
Headteacher at Fairview Bridge of Allan, David Hicks commented on Maite’s book saying: “We’re all incredibly proud of our student Maite on becoming a published author. As an authorised IB World School, our focus is on developing motivated students with a passion and thirst for learning. Our teachers and curriculum help inspire our students to take responsibility for their own learning and become independent learners, so we are delighted to see this ethos transpires into wonderful achievements like this. Covi will make a great addition to our school library and to any bookshelf.”
Visit fairviewinternational.uk for further details on school developments, Open Day and application process.
