If you are new to my blog page, my name is Kristina, I am an Occupational therapist working mainly with a neurodiverse population. I am a queer cis gender white woman, which is important to state because I feel like as a client centred therapist, I put a lot of focus on learning different perspectives.
Of course, I have to learn new things every day to help my clients meet their goals. I read and watch videos, attend courses and do research on different skills to meet my client’s therapeutic goals. However, in addition to learning therapeutic skills, I make sure to take time to expand my perspective taking skills by learning about different identities and ways of living. As I was searching for a leisure book on the library website, I came across a bunch of teen fiction novels staring main characters from diverse backgrounds. I thought I would try to share some of the different perspective taking fiction books in the next little while as I read more!
Lake Lore by Anna Marie McLemore
Diverse terms/themes – ADHD, dyslexia, queer family, exploring gender identity, cultural diversity/traditions, mental health etc.
Summary: “Everyone who lives near the lake knows the stories about the world underneath it, an ethereal landscape rumored to be half-air, half-water. But Bastián Silvano and Lore Garcia are the only ones who’ve been there. Bastián grew up both above the lake and in the otherworldly space beneath it. Lore’s only seen the world under the lake once, but that one encounter changed their life and their fate. Then the lines between air and water begin to blur. The world under the lake drifts above the surface. If Bastián and Lore don’t want it bringing their secrets to the surface with it, they have to stop it, and to do that, they have to work together. There’s just one problem: Bastián and Lore haven’t spoken in seven years, and working together means trusting each other with the very things they’re trying to hide. “
My review: This book is a bit of a trip because I feel like it is very cool and beautiful and insightful but also super metaphorical and can be kind of tricky to follow. To be fair though, it also is not my typical style of book so I acknowledged that when I started and just allowed myself to enjoy the beautiful imagery. Something I loved about this story was that it was not a stereotypical queer, disabled, diversity centred Hollywood style story. The characters identified outside of the societal “norm”, but the focus of the story wasn’t them being queer or having a disability, but rather them finding and accepting themselves as humans overall. I thought it was such a relatable exploration of disability as both the main characters felt shyness and shame around their challenges and navigate opening up about who they are. Something I loved was Bastian’s use of art as expression as this is something I can greatly relate to, especially with the idea of being a bit uncertain about what to do after releasing emotions and who should be exposed to them. As much as I don’t relate to every part of the identities of the main characters Bastian and Lore, I feel like I really related to the nuances of figuring out your differences and trying to explore where you belong and who you can trust with your unmasked version of yourself.
In the next little while I hope to continue to explore more books with diverse themes to expand perspectives and perhaps find some stories that my clients can relate to! If you have any recommendations please share!
Be Your Own Sunshine 