'Absurdimals' teaches children to accept individuality
By Jin Yu-young
“Absurdimals” by Gwendolyn Javor
In her recent picture book “Absurdimals: Lola Goes to School,” author Gwendolyn Javor teaches children the importance of accepting others and more importantly, themselves.
The story revolves around Lola, who is half bunny-half elephant and is bullied at school for being a hybrid animal and looking different from the rest of her animal classmates.
Ashamed, Lola seeks the advice of her principal who helps her understand that despite appearing different on the outside, everyone is in fact, similar to one another. “No matter what type of different, there's love in us all. That's what connects us! Love yourself, and the other animals will too,” he says.
These words guide Lola towards self-acceptance: she becomes confident in her unique identity and sets an example for the other students to love themselves as well.
With colorful and lively illustrations by Melissa Aker Spears, who received a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design and Illustration from the University of Central Oklahoma, the book teaches young children to embrace and celebrate their individuality despite social norms.
In an interview, the author shares her own experience of loneliness and how it turned into the inspiration behind “Absurdimals.”
“At our core, we all just want to feel love and connection… if we recognize this, we can put our superficial differences aside, and learn to become more accepting of ourselves and others.”
The book received widespread attention for its positive message, leading to a continuation of the series in “Absurdimals: Chester Learns to Swim.”
Javor expresses her hopes to continue to empower children and to help people “live their lives authentically.” She also mentions the possibility of targeting adult audiences in future projects.
Jin Yu-young is a Korea Times intern.