The International School of Lausanne (ISL) is known for fostering lifelong connections, creative collaborations, and inspiring projects that extend far beyond the classroom. The recently launched Captain Super Sleep children’s book project is a unique, creative venture between current ISL teacher Mr. Liam Printer and ISL 2020 graduate, Jade Tan that beautifully captures the ISL core values of creativity, innovation, and global community.
.After nearly three years, the book is now ready to leap into the hands of young readers worldwide. But for that to happen, we need you, the ISL community, to get behind it. Click here to support the project on Kickstarter and order your VIP, signed copy now.
Back in 2015, when Liam first joined ISL as a language teacher, Jade was in both his homeroom and his Spanish class. After graduating from ISL in 2020, Jade pursued her passion for creativity and drawing at Leeds Arts University, where she graduated with a degree in illustration in 2023.
“I’ve loved superheroes and storytelling since I was a child,” Jade says. “The idea of using character design and visual motifs to create entire worlds always fascinated me. When this project came up, it felt like everything I loved—superheroes, strong visual narratives, and empowering young kids—came together in one exciting challenge.”
The idea for Captain Super Sleep began in 2022, shortly after the birth of Liam’s first daughter, who, in a further ISL connection, will herself become part of the ISL community in August 2025. At the time, Liam was finishing up his Doctorate in Education, focusing on the motivational power of storytelling for language acquisition. His studies had immersed him in the science and research behind how babies develop language and how the stories and words they hear—even before they can speak—are fundamental in shaping their values, beliefs, and worldview.
It was this combination of new fatherhood and academic research, along with a distinct lack of sleep, that led to Mr. Printer’s creative ‘what if’ moment. “While trying once again to get my new-born daughter back to sleep, I started telling her stories about the incredible power of a full night’s rest, how sleep gives you superpowers to jump high, run fast and think quickly. How, the more time she slept, the more power she would have and that if she were to sleep the whole night, she could do anything and be anything.” Liam reflects. “With that, Captain Super Sleep was born.”
From this personal moment grew a playful yet research-backed story, designed to help young children understand the superpower of a full night’s sleep. Liam reached out initially to ISL’s inspirational Art teacher, Mr. Roger Nobs, seeking an ISL student who might be interested in doing some illustrations to bring the story to life. This led Liam back to Jade, who was studying illustration at university. And so, an ISL story came full circle—an ISL teacher and his former student, collaborating on both of their first-ever children’s books.
“Initially, I was just hoping to find a current student who liked character development. Someone who could help me to bring my vision of SuzZzie to life. I didn’t ever really see it becoming a proper published book. But when I saw Jade’s first sketches and ideas on paper, I knew we were on to something quite special” - recalls Liam.
The creative journey from first sketches to the final print-ready version has taken nearly three years. From countless drafts to character redesigns and mock-ups, Liam and Jade worked tirelessly across time zones, study schedules, and busy life commitments to bring Captain Super Sleep to life. This is the first children’s book for both Liam as an author and Jade as an illustrator, making it an especially meaningful debut for them both.
The result is Captain Super Sleep and the story of SuzZzie Dormir; a little girl who becomes the world’s newest superhero when she discovers that the more she sleeps, the stronger she becomes. Each night, as SuzZzie sleeps, she powers up and earns more ‘Zs’ for her superhero team, the Z-Squad. These ‘Zs’, each of whom come with their own powers and personality, give her the strength to face any challenge.
The book playfully weaves together humor, superhero storytelling, and subtle lessons about the importance of rest. The core message, however, goes far beyond sleep. “This story is as much about the power of community as it is about sleep,” Liam shares. “The Z’s SuzZzie finds in her wardrobe each morning after a full night’s sleep are her support, her power. Seeing the community of ISL alumni, colleagues, and listeners of my Motivated Classroom podcast get behind this project has been wonderful. It’s deeply personal, too—it’s inspired by my daughters and based on solid research into how storytelling helps children internalize positive values, like the importance of sleep, perseverance, and self-care.”
The Captain Super Sleep book has just gone live on Kickstarter here, where Liam and Jade are inviting you, the ISL community, to back this project and be part of the Captain Super Sleep adventure.
“We wanted to print the book as sustainably as possible, right here in Europe but that obviously leads to higher initial costs for us. We decided to launch the book on Kickstarter as we really hope that the whole ISL community will get behind it and make it a reality. Our goal is to have a whole series of books in the future, where SuzZzie (Captain Super Sleep) matures and grows alongside your child with each book becoming gradually more complex and the story more detailed to match your child’s maturity and reading development. I’d also like to create some Captain Super Sleep books in a variety of languages, for the language acquisition classroom aimed at teenagers and young adults. Goodness knows, they certainly need to learn the superpowers of a full night’s sleep at that age too!” - commented Liam.
By supporting the campaign, ISL families can not only get their hands on the book but also become part of the growing Captain Super Sleep community, the Z-Squad. There are reward tiers for all budgets from as little as €2 all the way up to special Kickstarter-only packages, including an eBook version and even an audio-video book narrated by Liam. Special bonus items such as a printable Captain Super Sleep colouring book are also available to those who back the project early.
“The way Kickstarter works, we really need people to back the project as early as possible. Essentially the more backers we have, no matter how small, the higher Kickstarter’s algorithm will place us on their global page. So, please, buy the book or even just show your support with a €2 pledge! It all counts towards their algorithm” - explains Liam.
The physical book comes in a beautiful 7cm x 7cm board book retailing at 9.95 CHF and a slightly bigger, premium, limited edition, hard-case version coming in at 14.95 CHF. For anyone living in the Lausanne area who wants to buy a physical copy of the book, they can select the “Local pick-up” option on Kickstarter and collect it directly from Liam at ISL.
“This is a story that began at ISL, is written by an ISL teacher and brought to life by an ISL graduate. Now, it can be propelled forward to meet its potential by the entire ISL community,” says Liam. “We’re asking the ISL family to be part of the Z-Squad and help us take SuzZzie Dormir to children everywhere. This is your chance to be part of a truly unique ISL story.”
We urge you all to visit their Kickstarter page, watch the project video, and see Jade’s dynamic artwork bring SuzZzie Dormir and her Z-Squad to life. This is more than just a book—it’s an invitation to be part of ISL’s very own Z-Squad, to champion creativity, and to celebrate the power of the ISL community that connects alumni and teachers across the world.
Click here to support the project on Kickstarter now and to reserve your VIP, signed copy.