Where Are You Going, Butterfly?

Gr 2-4–An impoverished young girl feels invisible and discouraged asking for change on the street. When a golden orange monarch butterfly flutters by, she decides to follow it. The butterfly leads her to meander around the city, helping people whose paths she crosses. She helps an old man thread a needle, and she finds an artist’s lost paintbrush. In the end, the people repay her favors by filling her cup with change. The artwork is sophisticated, with vibrant colors and expressive lines. In a note, the author says the book is informed by her own experiences with homelessness and her belief in interconnectedness. Although the narrative superficially seems to suggest that a materially poor person must prove of practical value to be worthy of notice, the deeper inference may be that community and working together raises all ships. A beautiful book, this can be book-talked or shared in lessons on civics.