The Bug Girl

By Sophia Spencer, Margaret McNamara, Kerascoet (Illustrator)

A young girl bullied for loving bugs finds support from scientists worldwide.

4.3/5 Goodreads · 605 ratings

44 pages· 1,121 words· Est. 9 min read-aloud

$17.99Save 7%

In stock. Also at Amazon or Bookshop.

Bookroo's summary

Sophia, a young bug enthusiast, faces bullying for her passion. When her mother reaches out for support, an outpouring of encouragement from women scientists worldwide inspires Sophia to embrace her love for insects. With the hashtag BugsR4Girls, Sophia's story becomes a beacon of hope, celebrating the power of staying true to oneself and the importance of women in science. Will Sophia's newfound confidence help her share her passion with the world?

From the publisher

Real-life 7-year-old Sophia Spencer was bullied for loving bugs until hundreds of women scientists rallied around her. Now Sophie tells her inspiring story in this picture book that celebrates women in science, bugs of all kinds, and the importance of staying true to yourself. Sophia Spencer has loved bugs ever since a butterfly landed on her shoulder–and wouldn’t leave!–at a butterfly conservancy when she was only two-and-a-half years old. In preschool and kindergarten, Sophia was thrilled to share what she knew about grasshoppers (her very favorite insects), as well as ants and fireflies… but by first grade, not everyone shared her enthusiasm. Some students bullied her, and Sophia stopped talking about bugs altogether. When Sophia’s mother wrote to an entomological society looking for a bug scientist to be a pen pal for her daughter, she and Sophie were overwhelmed by the enthusiastic response–letters, photos, and videos came flooding in. Using the hashtag BugsR4Girls, scientists tweeted hundreds of times to tell Sophia to keep up her interest in bugs–and it worked! Sophia has since appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and NPR, and she continues to share her love of bugs with others.

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