Too Sticky

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Author: Jen Malia
Illustrator: Joanne Lew-Vriethoff 
Publisher: Chicago, Illinois: Albert Whitman & Co. 2020   













Too Sticky reads an insightful narrative to raise the readers' awareness about Autism Spectrum Disorder and its consequent implications. The picture book relates the story of a different little girl, Holly, with a great dislike of sticky things who is very anxious to go to school on a day students will be making slime for science class. 
More significant to centralizing an autistic protagonist and her sensory frustrations is the way other characters are portrayed purely nonjudgmental and able to  create a supportive environment to the child,  helping her successfully navigates the experiment.  
Cartoony yet lively illustrations by Lew-Vriethoff's well highlight the inner feeling of the characters and complement author’s simple storytelling and its promising upbeat tone. These own-voices picture book gives a transparent mirror to a wide range of neurotypical readers (children, adults, parents, and teachers) to investigate autism sensory issues from a different yet more relatable point of view. 

For more information:
goodreads
author's website

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