Benny's True Colors
I definitely believe we need to work on having more inclusive stories featuring real people, but this is genuinely one of my favorite animal allegories for transitioning. Benny is always loved and supported by his community, both the bats who raised him and the butterflies he identifies with. It also approaches the topic of gender affirming surgery in a way that is understandable and not at all scary for young readers. I cannot wait to have this book on our shelves and get it into all of our local schools.
Description
Discover the joy of being your true self in this uplifting and empowering picture book about Benny, who looks like a bat but knows that he really is a butterfly.
Benny may look like a bat, but Benny doesn’t like flying at night, or eating bugs, or hanging upside down. Benny does like sunshine and fluttering and colorful wings. On the inside, Benny knows he is a butterfly!
“I want my outside to match who I am inside!” With the help of some butterfly friends in the garden, Benny makes a happy change. And his friends and his Momma all love him just the same.
Writer Norene Paulson and illustrator Anne Passchier's Benny’s True Colors is a transformative story about knowing your true self, and the joy of letting the world know you, too.
An Imprint Book
Praise for Benny's True Colors
“An incredibly powerful, compassionate book—a must read for anyone who wants to encourage kids to be true to themselves.”—Dr. Donna Cangelosi, Child Psychologist
“Passchier’s digital art style of bold shapes and colors with balanced compositions will appeal to a young readership who will delight in seeing Benny get his antennas and beautiful butterfly wings....Though this could be read just as a story of a bat wanting to be a butterfly, it’s also a gender-affirming conversation starter" –School Library Journal
