LAKE PLACID — “Dr. Fauci: How a Boy from Brooklyn Became America’s Doctor” is a delightful spin for scientific and curious minds.

Written by children’s book author Kate Messner and illustrated by Alexandra Bye, “Dr. Fauci” is a behind-the-man glimpse and a trip down a memory lane dotted with encyclopedias of a curious boy, Schwinn bike prescription deliveries, his contribution to a tight, entrepreneurial Italian family unit, where his grandfather and father dispensed wisdom that has impacted his and our collective COVID-19 past and present.

Messner, a former educator, put the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases under a microscope the way his team does the coronavirus and its variants.

“Dr. Fauci” is a fascinating and illuminating read for the curious of any age.

The biography (for ages 4-8) was released on June 29 by Simon & Schuster and debuted at #4 on the New York Times Bestseller List for Children’s Picture Books.

“The first printing was over 100,000 books,” the award-winning Plattsburgh author, said.

“It was a large first printing. I think Simon & Schuster understands that there’s a lot of interest in Dr. Fauci as a public figure.

“Many people just heard of him because of the coronavirus pandemic but this is somebody who’s actually been the nation’s top infectious disease expert for 40-some years. They knew there would be a lot of interest.”

A “sidewalk signing” launch at The Bookstore Plus in Lake Placid was the store’s first in-person event since the pandemic started in March of 2020.

“It was so nice to be out meeting readers face-to-face again,” Messner said.

The biography chronicles Fauci’s life from his whipper-snapper stickball days in a tough neighborhood to hoopster at an elite Jesuit high school, and as a summer construction worker dreaming of med school.

Messner conducted a 45-minute interview

with Fauci last year on his commute home one evening, and she followed with a Zoom interview on November 23, 2020.

It was during this conversation that the doctor recalled his father’s advice to him when facing a challenge: “Don’t get discouraged. Think about it carefully. Try to work it out.”

The book’s back matter includes “How Do Vaccines Work?,” “Are Vaccines Safe?” and “Dr. Fauci’s Five Tips for Future Scientists.”

There is also a timeline of his milestones that span seven U.S. presidents.

“I think most people who understand and appreciate science have been incredibly receptive,” Messner said.

“Certainly any book you write isn’t going to be for everyone. I think that kind of goes with the territory of writing about a public figure.

“He certainly is somebody that scientists and people who appreciate science respect a lot. The reception has been great for the book.”