I'll Tell You Why I Can't Wear Those Clothes

Noreen O'Sullivan visited me at the Soft office in Brooklyn last year. She is a former New Yorker, former elementary school teacher who currently lives in Denmark and has two daughters. I was very inspired by our meeting--she had wonderful ideas for Soft, great constructive feedback, and expressed joy that some of our styles had made her daughters dressing experience more tolerable, even enjoyable. She said that she was working on a secret project, which made me very curious, but she could not disclose any details until it was finished or nearly finished. I knew only it had something to do with creating awareness about Sensory Processing Disorder, and helping families and children understand the disorder and get the help they need.

About a year later, Noreen emailed me a link to her facebook page, and told me about a series of children's books she was writing called "I'll Tell You Why..." The first one, "I'll Tell You Why I Can't Wear Those Clothes," was already written, and dealt with tactile defensiveness, or sensory sensitivity. The mission of the series, as stated on her website:

"The children's book series will identify a problem, explain a behavior, introduce solutions, and offer awareness and understanding - all in a 10 minute read. Intended to be an interactive read with your child, each page offers a drawing journal with guiding questions. This provides an opportunity for children to talk about their individual needs. For the time being, the series is focusing on sensory issues, as there seems to be a lack of mainstream awareness in these areas of child development."

I was very excited to see the first book, and it arrived on my desk yesterday morning. I was so impressed first of all with the design. It is beautiful, modern, simple, yet also totally whimsical and inviting. The book is filled with photographs of Noreen's daughter engaged in the daily routine of her life, which immediately invites you to really empathize with the written description of her challenges. My favorite part* conceptually, is that opposite each text/photo page, there is an open space with an open ended question--inviting the reader to share in words or pictures their own related experience. As a teacher, I loved books that invited children to write in them! It really made them connect and remember the experience of the book's message.

I am looking forward to the rest of the series. Currently it is available on Amazon UK, but Noreen is working on getting distribution in the US. I will keep everyone updated on that! The book is joining a small but significant and impressive group of wonderful children's books on Sensory Processing Disorder (see below list).

I'll Tell You Why I Can't Wear Those Clothes, by Noreen O'Sullivan

This is Gabriel Making Sense of School, by Hartley Steiner

Sensitive Sam, by Marla Roth Fisch

and for more, see this great LIST on Amazon which includes books for kids and adults on SPD

*My OTHER favorite part is that our Soft Jeans make an appearance in one of the photos in the book!