Germs Are Not for Sharing/Los gérmenes no son para compartir
By Elizabeth Verdic • Illustrated by Marika Heinlen
Free Spirit Publishing • 2011 • 40 pages
Paperback ($11.95)
ISBN: 9781575423685
Ages 4-7
With the flu season starting earlier each year, this bilingual book has the potential to become a great tool for parents and teachers to help prevent the spread of germs. Bright, colorful, and often funny cartoon style children explain different facts about germs. The germs themselves are personified to help readers understand where they reside. Readers are told that germs can be found in the air, in food, water, one’s body, pets, door handles, and more.
Read Related: Healthy Tips to Fight the Flu
The book explains that not all germs are bad; only the ones that can make you sick, and teaches children how to correctly blow their noses, sneeze, and cough so that germs do not spread to other people and objects. Most importantly, it explains that one can get germs by holding hands, playing hand games and giving others high fives. Many children may not realize that this is one of the major ways they spread germs to others. There is a big emphasis on washing hands and keeping hands off the face and particularly the eyes and mouth.
A list of ten good times to wash hands can be found on a two-page spread. Some examples: before you eat, after you sneeze, after picking your nose, after going to the bathroom and after counting your coins. Another two-page spread exhibits places and things that may house germs. The back of the book includes more facts about germs that adults and kids can read together.
—Reviewed by Dr. Veronica Covington, School of Information, University of Texas, Austin
Editor’s Note: This title is part of the publisher’s “Best Behavior” series, which also includes Hands Are Not for Hitting/Las manos no son para pegar and Words Are Not for Hurting/Las palabras no son para lastimar in bilingual format.
