Welcome to the Home of 'Bess of Clara Vale'
A Place for Children to Discover Carefully Crafted Storytelling
Step into the delightful world of Bess Of Clara Vale, a series of thoughtfully crafted children's books written and illustrated by Lin Fidgin, an NHS nurse, artist, and Autistic Author.
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Bess was inspired by the real-life emotional support dog at Autism North East in Clara Vale in the NE of England.
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Through Bess, a thoughtful Labrador who experiences the world differently, her books aim to help children feel seen, understood, and valued.
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Bess of Clara Vale brings together lived experience, professional insight, and gentle illustrations to create stories rooted in empathy and understanding.
Lived experience brings authenticity and understanding of what it feels like to grow up “out of sync” with the world. Through Bess, these books aim to help children in a way that is accessible to them.
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Read About Bess On The BBC
‘I write books I wish I had as autistic child’
An author who writes children’s books about neurodiversity said she would have loved to have read those types of stories as an autistic girl.
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Lin Fidgin’s story about a Labrador with autism draws upon her own lived experience of feeling “out of sync with the world” and having sensory differences, comfort in repetition and routine, and struggling in social situations……
Step Into the World of Bess
Stories, Characters and Behind the Scenes Insights
Explore the growing collection of books, new characters, behind-the-scenes design insights, and releases.
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Discover the design process, packaging details, and the care taken to ensure each book feels special from the moment it is opened.
In these videos you can see some behind the scenes information, design process, printing and so much more.
Bess Videos
What Our Bess Readers Are Saying
"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