Book - Not Blue

"Your power and beauty lie in celebrating who you ARE, not in comparing yourself to what you ARE NOT."
A young girl lives in a completely blue world. She eats blue food, plays with blue toys, and all her friends are blue. Blue is just the way things are. As she gets older, her friends start pointing out that she is different. She is not blue. Her teachers tell all her friends that it is "fine" that she is not blue and that it is something not to be mentioned again. This makes the girl sad. Then she meets a woman who helps her to see and accept her individuality. Not Blue is about societal pressure to be "normal," to fit in, and to adhere to the status quo. Through the power of representation, self love and acceptance, one girl shines her own unique light, illuminating the fact that different can be extraordinarily beautiful. The vibrant illustrations creatively draw the reader through a journey from conformity, to individuality and diversity.

Written by New London local, Danielle Bergh, a Social Studies and Mindfulness teacher who works in the New London Public Schools

Illustrated by Autumn Wilson, a graduate of Syracuse University