There's A Feminist Little Miss Character Coming This March, And It's About Time

The Little Miss and Mr Men book series has been part of the majority of children's upbringings in some way, whether it was the books or the animated series that derived from them. Whilst I remember reading about Mr Bump and Little Miss Sunshine as a child (and even reading Mme. Prudente during my French classes as a 16-year old!), the series has been running for 45 years and counting.

The latest of Roger Hargreaves' creations to get their own book is Little Miss Inventor, whose book will be released on March 8, otherwise known as International Women's Day. Also in the UK, it will fall during British Science Week, which ties in brilliantly with a young female inventor. A character like Little Miss Inventor, amongst many other diverse characters, has been much-needed for a long time now, as women continue to be underrepresented in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) industries. Technology giants Microsoft took it upon themselves to conduct research into girls and their interest in STEM, with their results indicating that young girls develop an interest around 11 years old, yet lose said interest by 16 years old. The lack of representation of women in these kinds of career pathways undoubtedly has a large contribution to that, along with the way that gender stereotypes are encouraged in general when it comes to careers and future prospects.

Little Miss Inventor is hopefully the beginning of more exciting new faces in the Roger Hargreaves series, and the characters can continue to give children someone to look up.