Books, books, and more books!
I am so excited to not only be the illustrator for Sometimes Play, written by Renee Stewart, but also for my site to host the book too! Sometimes Play is a book that celebrates all play, and has been written with such genuine love and advocacy.
Sometimes Play by Renee Stewart
and illustrated by Me!
Liam and Lucy Explore Empathy is such a wonderful book that truly shatters stereotypes, exploring Empathy from both a hyper-empathic and hypo-empathic Autistic point of view. I am honoured that I was the one who drew the pictures for this amazing story!
Lucy and Liam Explore Empathy by Lizzie Somerfield
& illustrated by Me!
When I was looking for a children’s book to begin the conversation of explaining my daughters diagnosis to her, nothing jumped out at me that presented the information in words she would understand- simply, factually, and in a way she could emotionally connect with. Frustration soon turned to realisation that I could write a book with a new point of view and that is how my ‘Neurodiversity without all the Terminology’ series began.
Neurodiversity without all the Terminology
My Books
Hey, Hi! Just a quick note from me to you...
Hey, Hi! Just a quick note from me to you...
I am based in Australia so my to Aussie friends - buying here from my website is the best way to get your hands on my books! (And lets not forget I pack them with love and care and all that extra small business goodness). I also have a few stockists scattered throughout the country so you may even be able to pick one up in person!
For my International buddies - that international postage is a stinker, I get that. But, if you are wanting to purchase multiples or wanting that super personalised packed with love experience, then thank you for supporting on here BUT if your wanting one book or wanting the books delivered fast into your hands, then purchasing from Amazon will be the way to go.
More About My Books…
My Brain is a Race Car is my first book I wrote and published in the wake of my daughters ADHD diagnosis and was done so in a true cliche ADHD hyper focus. I wanted to find a book for her about ADHD that didn’t use the acronym ‘ADHD’, the ones that did didn’t have the message I wanted and the ones that didn’t use it seemed too vague in it’s message.
Frustrated I could not find what I wanted, I laid in bed stewing over my disappointment late into the evening. Hours later around midnight, the book I wanted to find began forming in my mind - the words, the cover, the artwork style, all of it! The thought of being a children’s book author / illustrator was never on my to do list prior to this moment. But, the next three days I did nothing but write and illustrate- food, water, and sleep were completely ignored and irrelevant.
The end product was my proudest art creation to date, a story I am so emotionally proud of and connected to; a way to explain a ‘different' brain’ and some self regulation and accomodations to keep it working optimally. I wanted this book to be in a neutral standpoint so neurodivergents would read and connect while neurotypicals could read and understand.
My Feelings are Waves is a book that talks about how we can swept up in big feelings - like a wave at the beach does before it dunks us. We ride our feelings like we do a wave, but every wave is different, some bigger, some smaller, some easy to hop off, some make us wipe out. Some of us experience Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) which is an intense, painful, physical and emotional reaction to rejection or perceived rejection.
This book talks about the sensation of RSD without using any clinical or diagnostic terminology, but focusing on a more 'feelings and emotions' perspective - kept in kids words and understanding.
This book gives two regulation strategies on how to move through the terrifying experience of RSD in kids terms (temporary distraction and processing). More importantly, this book is a conversation opener between reader and audience, to create a bond of understanding through emotion and a way to begin talking about what regulation strategies would work for YOU.
My Body has a Bubble is my second published book (no, I did not move through the rainbow in order - blame the ADHD) and focuses on the concept of personal space. Personal space is a learned social construct and when you’re a neurodivergent spending time heavily masking in society, you are living reacting and reflecting to social cues rather than interpreting and predicting like personal space expects us to.
The intent of this book is to highlight that every single person’s personal space is unique, and is not wrong in its uniqueness. People who need extra space or has have extra large bubbles are completely within their own right to have that, as are people whose bubble includes everyone. The key is that voicing and clarifying what our bubbles are, or what our personal space preferences are should be normal as not all of us can interpret and decipher subtle cues. Nor should we be punished for making mistakes or misinterpreting the signs from others
In summary I love to say this book is about understanding space, respecting others space, and protecting your own personal space.