Maybe Just Ask Me! by Katie Mazeika

A good friend of mine has a slight but noticeable disability, and one of the first things he ever said to me was “Ask me about it.” That, in no small part, fueled my desire to read and review this title.

Mazie is ready for her first day at a new school. She and her parents have talked about what might happen and what she can do if presented with a challenge, so she feels pretty prepared, knowing that she’s going in looking very different from everyone else. But she’s put on her favorite scarf and her prettiest eye patch, and is ready to go out and make friends.

The other kids aren’t mean. But they’re also, to her dismay, more interested in speculating about why she looks the way she does rather than just asking her directly. She hears some wild theories about her baldness and her eye patch but, frustratingly, no one approaches her to have a conversation and potentially make friends. And because she understands that being proactive is important, she tries to approach people herself… but no one ever seems to notice or hear her.

Mazie is understandably discouraged, but she didn’t beat back cancer just to give up on accomplishing easier things now! She hatches a plan to make sure that people start talking to her instead of talking about her. Will it work? More importantly, will it help her make new friends?

This charming picture book is autobiographical, as Katie Maziekas was once that little girl. Having dealt with the aftermath of cancer almost her entire life, she’s well-positioned to talk about living with disability in terms of how it affects both herself and the people around her. She strongly believes that the “polite” method of dealing with other people’s disabilities — i.e. ignoring them and, by extension, the entire person — is far ruder than just asking, with kindness, “what happened?”

Ms Maziekas also provides a list of things that she believes people can do to be supportive of people with disabilities. It essentially boils down to being mindful of language, not making assumptions about others, and leading with empathy and kindness: all excellent lessons that are never too early (or too late!) to learn. When my friend invited me to ask him about his disability, I felt like I was being rude, but this book reinforces the lesson that it’s better to politely ask the source rather than to wildly speculate. Personally, I think it’s important too to ask without condescension or pity. This is a terrific book that reminds readers that people with disabilities are, first and foremost, people.

Maybe Just Ask Me! by Katie Mazeika was published April 22 2025 by Beach Lane Books and is available from all good booksellers, including