Winner of the 2023 Governor General’s Award for Children’s Literature—French Language

An honest exploration of climate anxiety, for kids 8+ and the adults who love them.

When ten-year-old Florent overhears his mothers discussing the possibility of having another baby—and expressing their reluctance due to fears about the planet—his mind races off into a spiral of fear and guilt. Is the planet suffering because there are too many children—children like him? Do his parents think they made a mistake by bringing him into the world?

One night, Florent dreams that the forests have all burned to the ground and that his parents are flying away on a spaceship, abandoning him on a ruined planet. When he wakes up, he decides to stop talking… until a discussion with his mothers changes everything.

At a time when climate change is negatively impacting kids' mental health, Butterfly Wings provides:

• Anxiety relief: provides a safe space for kids to process their anxiety, fear, and other emotions about the climate
• A social-emotional learning tool for parents and teachers to talk about climate change with kids through a gentle and hopeful lens

Through thoughtful words and gorgeous illustrations, this compassionate story confronts the very real challenge of climate anxiety in a way that is accessible to young readers. Butterfly Wings provides children with a way to understand their feelings, while also offering hope for a different future.