Jennifer P. Goldfinger is the author and illustrator of the new children's picture book Daisy the Daydreamer. Her other books include A Fish Named Spot. Also a fine artist, she lives in Portland, Maine.
Q: You write that Daisy the Daydreamer was inspired by your own experiences with ADHD--can you say more about that?
A: I was diagnosed with ADHD a couple of years before I had the idea for Daisy. I was still working out in my head what it was all about.
The seed was planted one day during Covid when I was doing my typical deep dive into the Sunday New York Times. My head spun as I got excited about all of the books I was going to read, all of the movies I would watch, all of the recipes I would make and all of the places I would visit. I enjoyed it but I also felt overwhelmed all at the same time (because of my ADHD).
The one day I came up with the seed for Daisy I had looked a book up online and saw on the same page a book by Maira Kalman. I loved her illustrations and suddenly did a deep dive on her work and found she had done a TED Talk. In her TED Talk she talked about how lucky she was to be a daydreamer.
At the time, I was frustrated with my own daydreaming and missing subjects I was lectured to in school or reading boring articles. But that TED Talk made me realize how cool it can be to be a daydreamer and how much I do get from it. So I learned to embrace it.
A couple of weeks later I woke up in the middle of the night with the more detailed ideas of the book that ended up being Daisy the Daydreamer.
Q: Did you work on the text first or the illustrations first--or both simultaneously?
A: I drew one picture of the cloud over Daisy’s head with it raining, then I wrote the manuscript. Periodically while writing, I would have an image in my head that I would sketch out.
Q: The Publishers Weekly review of the book says, “Goldfinger portrays with deep compassion how being fully seen and understood can open up new possibilities.” What do you think of that description?
A: One of the struggles people with ADHD have is the messages they get throughout life of “why didn’t you listen,” “why do you keep losing things,” “why are you late” and on and on. We internalize all of these messages and can really be down on ourselves because of them.
But in the mean time, people with ADHD have superpowers but they don’t always see them themselves at first. They can be incredibly creative, have really fast brains, are very persistent until they solve a problem. They can be told they are lazy, but they are anything but that. They just get stuck sometimes with not always having a direct path.
So when Daisy stood up for herself and showed the teacher that she took in the information differently than other kids and Mrs. Dill saw her and let her know what she was capable of, that was a huge gift to Daisy.
Q: What do you hope kids (and adults) take away from the story?
A: That their ADHD is nothing to be bashful about and that they are actually able to do amazing things that neurotypical minds can’t. So many artists, inventors, and other exceptional people have ADHD. It can truly be a superpower.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: In the children’s book world, I have two different picture book dummies that I’m working on with two different editors. As well, I’m revising a graphic novel and a middle grade novel.
I’m a fine artist as well as a children’s book author and illustrator. I have a big art show and two smaller ones coming this year that I’m making a body of work for as well.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: One other thing I guess I’ll mention is that girls with ADHD often show up more like Daisy. They aren’t disruptive with lots of energy like boys. Girls tend to have lots going on in their heads and their energy is bouncing around in their minds.
This often why girls don’t get diagnosed at an early age, like boys do. It’s not always the case, but more often it is. When I meet a little girl who really relates to Daisy, I let them know I see them and can relate to them and they are going to do cool things.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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