I’m a proud father of two sons, Louis (9) and Otis (nearly 2). Louis has Autism and absolutely loves his little brother Otis, watching Louis grow and share this special bond with his little brother has been magical and really confirmed to me that life is all about kindness!
One night, the idea of writing a bedtime story for my two sons about the special bond they share jumped into my head. And with that, The Penguin Family books were born.
The Penguin family books are stories of Autism and Kindness for children. The characters of Brother Penguin and Little Penguin are helping to spread awareness of the day-to-day realities of living with the condition and the big difference that being kind can make to others.
After much encouragement, I took the plunge and self-published the book with 20% of the book sales going to SEN school, The Foreland Fields.
So far, the donations have helped towards the building of their sensory playground which opened on 19th July 2019. This was an amazing achievement, but I still need YOUR help to reach more children and raise further awareness of the day-to-day realities of Autism!
Did you know that:
- Autism is much more common than many realise. There are around 700,000 people on the autism spectrum in the UK, including Louis. If you include their families, autism is a part of daily life for 2.8 million people.
- 34% of children on the autism spectrum say that the worst thing about being at school is being picked on
- 63% of children on the autism spectrum are not in the kind of school their parents believe would best support them
- The right support, at the right time, can make an enormous difference to people’s lives
To make a real difference to those on the autism spectrum, spreading awareness of the condition to children at a young age is vital and I hope The Penguin Family will achieve just that.
Little by little, through education, we can make school a happier place for Autistic children.
How can you or your business help?
- Read the stories to your children and help them to understand what being autistic really means
- Many businesses make charitable donations, so how about buying some copies to donate to a local school or nursery who often have incredibly limited budgets?
- Just sharing this article could make a big difference
Both books are available on Amazon, with The Penguin Family priced at £6.99 and Little Penguins Birthday priced at £4.99, so far selling in 11 countries and achieving 5 star-reviews.
To all my connections who took the time to read this, thank you! Together, we can make a huge difference to the lives of those with autism.
