Slug Days Stories V03 Duck Days might be the third in the series but is a slightly standalone story. However, it would probably be best to read the others first.
Sara Leach created a modern story about a girl on the Autism spectrum. Lauren tells her story about being a third grader, her best friend Irma, learning about how friendships have many forms and what it means to be brave. The tone of the story is classic, even slightly old fashioned, but is still set in the “here and now.” A few black and white illustrations done by Rebecca Bender highlight some of the points and scenes. They are fun, sweet, and support the story by helping you visualize the action. They show the diversity of Lauren’s world and showing the stereotypical traditional family structure of her home life.
The plot of the story shows how Lauren has trouble adapting to the world, how she is learning to “go with the flow” and how to be a “duck” (let the bad things the bully says to wash over her). The character of Lauren seems both realistic and maybe a bit idealized. Though the book is set for the at least strong six/seven-year-old to a young ten-year-old and I am sure Leach did not want to cause “too much drama” all at once, allowing the focus to be on the friendship issue (sharing of friends, having multiple friends) and the brave issue.
Overall, this is a solid three for me, as I think kids will enjoy the story and if have a child on the spectrum it is a good way of representation.