Rona Stole My Fun!: The Four Year Old Vs the Virus (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780646818573)

Rona Stole My Fun is a collaborative project between a mother (author) and her four-year-old daughter, Tara (illustrator). This precious book explores the impact of Coronavirus, social distancing, and recent global changes on children, and is a glimpse in to how one little girl has processed these changes. Through her beautifully (and humorously ) created artworks, Tara tells the story of a naughty Rona and how this creature attempts to steal her fun.

The book is a novel way for kindergartens, teachers, parents, grandparents, and carers of young children to view the impact of recent global and local social changes on kids, and to reassure them about the safety of their fun. It is a lovely reminder of the resilience of the four-year-old mind and a tribute to a period in all of our lives when we were forced to reflect on the people and things that mean the most to us. This children's book about social distancing and the love of family and friends, especially grandparents, touches on the impact of isolation from others and the sometimes-funny impacts that might have on us.

Rona Stole My Fun celebrates the importance of children's art and creativity, as Tara pays tribute to her two-year-old sister, whom she has been working with in isolation to create this book. Tara reassures all her little friends from around the world that they can outsmart Rona through a game of hide-and-seek and staying at home, and that fun will ultimately be saved. This will see Rona end up in the "naughty corner" for her bad behaviour and result in rainbows at the end of the story. The creativity and resilience of the four-year-old mind is the ultimate winner. Fun cannot and will not be lost. So buckle up Rona....

Come on a journey with Tara's imagination and help reassure little people that the fun they lost through social distancing, isolation, and kindergarten, swimming class and facility closures, is only temporary. Enjoy the innocence of the illustrations throughout the book and perhaps use them to talk to your children about what the changes have meant to them. A beautiful keepsake during what has been a very extraordinary 2020.