Wiggling Words

About this book

The child in this book is trying to read a story, but all the letters keep getting jumbled up in their mind and in front of their eyes: wiggling, jiggling, and jumping. Frustrated, they stop reading and regard the mountain of red letters that have fallen out of the book. 

However, once the child starts to play with the letters, they enjoy making all kinds of things: flowers, towers, and castles. They realise that they can invent and make anything that they dream of, and that is the power and pleasure of letters and words. 

This rather unusual, beautiful and artistic picture book explores the experience of a dyslexic reader who finds that words can sometimes jump around on the page, and the common experience of a variety of neurodivergent readers who can find text difficult to access. 

At the end of the book, the author and illustrator Kate Rolfe shares a little of her own experience as a dyslexic reader, giving some useful tips for helping with reading, and reminding the reader that creativity and imagination is the way forward. 

This picture book will have broad appeal in a wide variety of age groups, thanks to its message, its simple and profound concept, and its beautiful design.