Then I have a story for you. It's about how I counted to a million during lockdown - with help from Mum and Dad, friends and neighbours, and Grandad. And some birds. And a bucket of marbles. And an awesome TV reporter.

Sometimes, just keeping on going makes you a hero.

Eight-year-old Max is counting to a million. Normally, school or having anything interesting to do would get in the way, but school is shut and everyone has to stay home because the UK is in its first lockdown. Max's dad works at the hospital and counting helps Max with missing him, but as the pandemic progresses and Max's grandad journeys through his own battle with the virus, what starts as a distraction turns into record-breaking effort that brings Max's community together.

Suitable for readers aged 7 up, this poignant, uplifting story reflects the experiences shared by so many during the Covid pandemic and celebrates how ordinary people accomplish epic things.

Auteur

Jeremy Williams grew up in Madagascar where he lived with his parents, two brothers, two sisters, a dog, three pigeons, sixteen chickens, four ducks, four tortoises, two cats that liked him and one that did not. There was no TV or computer games, so he read every children's book in the house, then Dad's history books and Mum's classic novels. Then he started on the encyclopedia. He read as far as G before somebody sent some new books. Unsurprisingly, Jeremy has only ever wanted to be a writer. Today he writes serious books for adults and less serious books for children. He still doesn't have quite enough books.