Bess of Clara Vale: Celebrating Autism, Belonging & Friendship for Children

Bess Of Clara Vale’s First Book Has Launched!

You can still buy one of our Bess books here

Thoughtfully Illustrated Children’s Books About Autism, Belonging and Friendship

Bess of Clara Vale is a growing series of illustrated children’s books that gently explore difference, friendship, and what it means to belong.

Through bright watercolour/procreate illustrations and carefully crafted storytelling, Bess and her friends explore sensory differences, social misunderstandings, friendship and reassurance, confidence and self-acceptance.

These books are for children who experience the world differently, and for the families, teachers, and friends who want to better understand them.

Created by NHS nurse, artist, and autistic author Lin Fidgin, these stories offer children a reassuring message

Because different is not broken or something to fix.

Meet Lin Fidgin: Nurse, Artist and Autistic Author

I graduated with First-Class Honours in Fine Art from Teesside University before qualifying as a registered nurse.

Between hospital shifts and creative time, I have returned to storytelling to create the books I wish I’d had as a child.

As an autistic woman, I understand what it feels like to grow up slightly “out of sync” with the world. Through Bess, a thoughtful Labrador who experiences the world differently, I aim to help children feel seen, understood, and valued.

My work brings together lived experience, professional insight, and gentle illustrations to create stories rooted in empathy and understanding.

Want to Learn More?

Early Reviews: What Our Bess Readers Are Saying

“As an adopter and foster carer to two lovely girls, neither of them with a formal diagnosis (yet), but both of them experiencing life ‘differently’, I found this book perfect for them to connect with, as it touches very gently on the many ways that neurodivergent people may experience the world. There is a lovely, nurturing acceptance with Bess, which is so helpful for children like mine who don’t quite fit into one neat and tidy box. The book leaves the reader with the warm feeling that it doesn’t matter why you might find things in life tricky, or what those things might be, but that with understanding and kindness, life can be good.
The illustrations are absolutely beautiful, and the facial expressions for Bess are just so expressive that it’s impossible not to fall in love with her!
This book is for anyone at all, autistic, trauma-experienced, and neurotypical alike – it will help those children who find the world a little tricky to understand themselves better, and those who don’t, to perhaps understand and help a friend they haven’t yet made.”

Lisa
Adopter and Foster Carer

“A beautifully illustrated book that opens a window on neurodivergence. Gentle, engaging, and full of heart. It helps those of us who have a brain wired differently feel seen, loved, understood, and valued.“

Carolyn Godfrey
Former Vice-President of the Methodist Church
Regional Officer for Safeguarding

“What an absolute delight! The message is clear and easy to relate to, and the illustrations are simply beautiful, works of art in their own right! I think that any young person (or older person, for that matter) reading this will instantly relate if they are on the spectrum. I look forward to the series!”

Kate Bamforth
Learning Disability Nurse Specialist

“The book has the potential to become as important & influential to children with autism as ‘I had a black dog’ by Matthew Johnstone did for men with depression. From the illustrations, through the warm and meaningful words, to the characters themselves (especially Bess) this book is a triumph and celebration of everything individual and unique. Beautiful.“

David Jackson
Senior Lecturer in Adult Nursing at Teesside University