BOOK REVIEW: The Curiosities by Zana Fraillon and Phil Lesnie

BOOK REVIEW: The Curiosities by Zana Fraillon and Phil Lesnie

Lothian Children’s Books
September 2021
Hardcover, $26.99
Reviewed by Steph O’Connell

Children’s Picture Books / Diversity

78% Rocking

 

A lyrical and moving story inspired by the people who see the world differently, from the award-winning author of The Bone Sparrow and Wisp.

With the Curiosities, a whole world of wonders and possibles awaits…
Miro wakes one morning to find the world isn’t quite the way he thought it was. When the Curiosities choose Miro as the one they nest on, Miro is led to discover all the marvels waiting in the shadows where no-one else looks. Sometimes though, the Curiosities can make Miro feel alone and invisible in the darkness.
But perhaps Miro isn’t as alone as he thinks…
A beautiful celebration of disability, diversity and pride in who you are, from one of Australia’s most loved and awarded writers for children.

 

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But sometimes, the Curiosities were so loud and strange that people couldn’t help but stare.
The Curiosities trilled and gurgled, pulling at Miro’s arms and flapping at his legs, whispering in his ears so that all about him disappeared into a buzz of cold noise and confusion.
Sometimes, the Curiosities were so bright and brilliant that everyone turned away.

A gorgeously-illustrated look at people who are a little bit “different”. Inspired by the author’s child who was diagnosed with Tourette’s at 5, this is a story for anyone who has dealt with anxiety, depression, sensorial overwhelm, emotional trauma, spectrum disorders, or a range of other things that are often seen as a detriment, but should instead be explored and cherished for the ways in which they make us diverse.

There is a message here about how handling the thing that makes you different becomes less of a burden when you find others who have experience with those differences in their own lives, and when discussion and exploration is encouraged, when we stop trying to force a one-size-fits-all mentality. And how one might find a community of support and understanding from those who have been there.

And there it was. A single thread of knowing, thin and fragile and almost invisible to his fingers, but there.
Gently, carefully, Miro pulled.

As a creative who is a little bit “different” (emotional trauma, PTSD, OCD, anxiety, depression, and suspected ADHD and/or Autism), I feel there was also a message here about finding the things that bring joy, that celebrate the ways you might see things differently. It encourages exploring doing things in your own way, especially when it comes to creativity and problem-solving.

Miro had never noticed all the oddments and snippets before, all those wonders and possibles waiting in the shadows where no-one else looked.

And that’s a beautiful message to communicate to anyone who is neuro-diverse and might have been made to otherwise see themselves as “less than”, or broken.

Category: Book Reviews