Lauren has Autism Spectrum Disorder and sees the world differently. She has trouble reading social cues and doesn't do well when things change or aren't in the proper order. She works with her parents and teachers to make plans and adjust her behavior but some days are harder than other days. Happily, the next day is a butterfly day! Lauren gets enough stickers in her behavior book to get ice cream and her favorite part of getting ice cream is playing with the goopy bits in the trough. But this time her fingers get stuck.
The days continue, good and bad, with incidents at school, trying to interact (or not) with her baby sister, and working with her parents on Insectia, a crafted home for insects. Lauren goes to therapy and tries to apply what she learns with mixed results. In the end, she does manage to connect with her baby sister and even make a friend at school, although she still has slug days and butterfly days.
An author's note explains a little more about people with ASD and the author's experience as a teacher. Black and white illustrations show Lauren enthusiastically trying to navigate the world, having bad days and good days. This is a gentle introduction to kids who think differently, and while it includes suggestions it is not didactic. It would have been nice to have this written from the perspective of someone who is actually autistic, and not so clearly directed at non-autistic kids as an audience, but it's a good addition to a very small field of literature.
Verdict: Pair this with West Meadow Detectives for stories that include neurodiverse protagonists for young readers.
ISBN: 9781772780222; Published 2017 by Pajama Press; Borrowed from another library in my consortium
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