Hi, I Am Micro
Gianni Rodari Special Prize, City of Omegna 2017
Gianni Rodari Special Prize, City of Omegna 2017The epic story of life on Earth—told by one of its smallest but most powerful inhabitants.
Micro, an invisible microbe, tells his own life story across billions of years. Born on the early Earth, he survives volcanoes, oceans, and mass extinctions. Microbe is the witness to the grand history of life: the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere thanks to photosynthetic microbes, the appearance of plants and animals, and the age of dinosaurs, whose bodies and ecosystems were already deeply intertwined with microbial life. He describes how microbes colonize soil, water, plants, and animal bodies, forming invisible but vital partnerships. Decomposition, composting, and nutrient cycles are presented not as abstract processes but as the daily work of countless microscopic recyclers.
The narrative then shifts to humanity. Micro recounts how, for most of history, humans ignored the microbial world, attributing disease and fermentation to magic or divine forces. The discoveries of early microscopists and scientists such as Pasteur mark a turning point, leading to hygiene, soap, vaccines, and antibiotics. Yet the book avoids a simplistic “microbes as villains” narrative: Micro stresses that harmful species are a minority, while many microbes sustain digestion, food production, environmental cleanup, and modern biotechnology.
Hi, I Am Micro won the Gianni Rodari Special Prize, City of Omegna in 2017. The book is part of the ten-book series Little Geniuses, published by Valentina Edizioni. The other books are: I Am Water, I Am Zero, I Am Future, I Am Air, I Am Sun, I Am Moon, I Am Robot (Gianni Rodari Special Prize, City of Omegna 2017), I Am Gea, I Am Time.
By the same author or illustrator
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Hi, I Am Moon
Our oldest cosmic companion finally tells “her side” of the story. A proud, slightly ironic narrator who has watched Earth for 4.5 billion years: the Moon. Speaking directly to readers, she tells the story of her birth from a colossal collision between the young Earth and a wandering planet, explaining how this violent origin made her composition similar to Earth’s…
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Hi, I Am Time
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Hi, I Am Air
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Hi, I Am Future
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Hi, I Am Robot
A curious little robot, a big journey into the wonders of science and friendship The true and extraordinary story of a small robot, heir to the long tradition of ancient automata and forerunner of a new generation of curious, thinking machines. Equipped with a computer for a brain, this little robot can see in the dark, help with homework, tidy…
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Hi, I Am Sun
The story of the Sun told by itself, without mincing words A cheerful science book where the Sun itself grabs the microphone and starts chatting with Earthlings. In a friendly, slightly cheeky voice, it tells its life story: how it was born from cosmic dust, how it shines, and why life on Earth depends so much on its daily work.…
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Hi, I Am Gea
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Hi, I Am Zero
True and extraordinary story of Mr. Nothing and how he became a magical number, capable of opening doors onto infinity, creating universes, and multiplying by ten the numbers he stands beside. Zero is a number, like Seven, Three, and Nine, but it is a very special number. If monuments were built to numbers, the largest should be dedicated to Zero.…
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Hi, I Am Water
A witty, science-rich journey where facts and personality mix, and where the narrator is quite literally the substance of life. “Hello, I am Water. And I have a lot to say”. Water introduces itself as an ancient, globe-trotting protagonist who has seen everything: the birth of life in primordial oceans, the age of dinosaurs, the rise of civilizations, and humanity…
