Masked Hero: How Wu Lien-teh Invented the Mask That Ended an Epidemic by Dr. Shan Woo Liu, Laili Liu Gormley, and Lisa Wee - ADVISABLE

Masked Hero: How Wu Lien-teh Invented the Mask That Ended an Epidemic by Dr. Shan Woo Liu and Laili Liu Gormley, illustrated by Lisa Wee. NON-FICTION PICTURE BOOK. MIT Kids Press (Candlewick), 2023. $19. 9781536228984

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW

In the late 1800’s, Lien-the was a child in Malaysia. Early on he dreamed of being a physician and worked hard to fulfill his dream - germs being his focus. In 1910 he was sent to the border between Russia and China to deal with a mysterious plague. Though masks had been in use before, Lien-teh perfected a better mask - one that could save doctors and nurses as they worked with plague patients and actually reduce the disease’s spread. 

I love that the authors are descendants of Lien-teh. He suffered the same doubts and hostility that masks garnered during the Covid-19 pandemic. While by itself it isn’t a page turner, it is important to add more dimension to the story of medicine and fighting pandemics - maybe the next one won’t bring so much controversy and we can save more lives.

Cindy Mitchell, Library Teacher, MLS