I DON'T LIKE BIRTHDAY PARTIES

Unlike the other kids he knows, Lucas does not like birthday parties: He finds them chaotic and loud and overwhelming.

Lucas wishes that he could like parties the way that all of his friends seem to instead of just standing in the corner and watching. The next time he receives a party invitation, he decides to go and to be extra brave. When he gets to the party, a girl offers him a temporary tattoo. He takes it even though he finds it “slimy and sticky” and altogether unpleasant. He then gets into the bounce house, where he is “bumped right and banged left.” He even tries to be in the party photo, but the flash hurts his eyes. Finally, in frustration, he crawls under the table—where he meets a girl named Kate who also doesn’t like birthday parties. Kate tells him that hers are small and quiet, with only a few friends. Lucas realizes that he does like birthday parties—he just likes ones that are a little different than what you would expect. The protagonist’s plight is explored with empathy and clarity. However, it is not clear until the end that Lucas is being brave because he is struggling to plan his own party, which makes the book’s final pages feel disconnected from the main storyline. Lucas has very light brown skin, and Kate is pale. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An empathetic picture book about being a little bit different.