What a supremely necessary and vital addition to the canon of Autistic stories for kids. I was thrilled to discover this novel in verse at my local bookstore, and picked it up immediately. I’m so glad I did. 

Selah’s journey to self-understanding is particularly needed in the sense that it is a story of The Lost Girls, a name given to undiagnosed or late-diagnosed Autistic girls missed by the medical system due to their presentations not aligning with that of the cis, white, male- based diagnostic criteria Autism currently has. Girls struggle to get diagnosed, and therefore struggle to get accommodations and understanding they desperately need. I could see this book being an epiphany for exactly such a girl, and know Selah’s story will be treasured by young readers. 

As a Lost Girl myself, and the child of an undiagnosed Autistic parent, Selah’s experience of being socialized by neurodivergent rules of Normal rang so true to my experiences as a child, and it was a true delight to see. I wish this author only the best, and look forward to seeing what else they put out!