Flap Your Hands

January 15, 2024
Four children flutter, flap, and rock their way from overwhelmed to centered in an arrestingly illustrated introduction to the concept of self-regulatory movement from Asbell, making his picture book debut. Listing examples of stims—from repetitive movements (“Your feet might kick like splashy flippers”) to vocal variations (“choosing a word with funny sounds/ one that feels just right for you”)—rhythmic text invites readers to “try a stim” in response to bubbling-over feelings that “have no place to go.” In saturated digitally rendered illustrations, close-packed, scratchboard-like lines radiate outward from four characters of varying skin tones, creating a frenzied, blurred rainbow that obscures specific details. Clarity sharpens as the children regulate, until the primary figures and backgrounds come into focus over the symbol of neurodivergent pride, and page turns reveal one child in a grocery store, another walking alongside traffic, one experiencing a birthday, and another at a bus stop. Relying on this emphatic visual manifestation to contextualize feelings of dysregulation, this aptly experiential representation of stimming foregrounds the idea that “no feeling is too huge to handle—// No noise too jarring to bear—// When everyone’s allowed to stim// And celebrate who they are!” Includes an author’s note. Ages 5–10. Agent: Christy T. Ewers, CAT Agency.

January 15, 2024
Autistic children use stimming to cope with stressful situations. The book follows four racially diverse children, each of whom ends up in an overstimulating situation, such as the cacophony of traffic. By stimming--defined in an author's note as "repetitive, self-stimulating behavior"--they can regulate their emotions. Asbell cleverly leaves a white border around images depicting the overwhelming situations and fills the page when portraying positive sensory experiences, immersing readers in these scenes. The stunning, textured illustrations practically vibrate with color and sound, depicting the world the way a hypersensitive child might perceive it. Color and shape convey both pleasant and unpleasant sensations and capture the joy and satisfaction of the children's personal stims. The text reads awkwardly, however, as though it initially had a poetic meter that was abandoned. In general, the verse doesn't rhyme, yet there are moments when rhymes seem to build and are then forgotten. Still, the core message is clear, validating, and meaningful. This is truly a celebration of neurodiversity that goes against decades--perhaps centuries--of stigma and tells kids that stimming isn't just OK; it's liberating. A beautiful book with an important message for autistic children and those who know them. (Picture book. 4-7)

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March 15, 2024
Preschool-Grade 3 This beautiful book celebrates the action of stimming as a means of emotional regulation. In his contextually important author's note, Asbell identifies as autistic and explains that while everyone engages in some form of stimming--perhaps tapping one's foot when impatient or clicking one's pen when stressed--this behavior "is not just natural and healthy but even necessary for autistics." Though autism is never directly mentioned in the main text, children on the spectrum may well recognize some of the comforting and expressive actions described here. Vibrant, impressionistic illustrations created in Photoshop introduce four preliminary scenes of children experiencing sensory overload or overwhelming emotions before launching into gorgeous double-page spreads of the same kids using stimming as a positive outlet for their feelings. In one, a girl flutters her fingers by her ears when street traffic grows too loud. Another shows an overwhelmed boy pause to "tickle the space next to [his] face to enjoy the sparkling lights." The short second-person sentences give the text an inviting tone that furthers the book's uplifting and inclusive messaging.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.