Award winner · 2026
Bella's Beautiful Spots is a Purple Dragonfly Book Award winner by Story Monsters Inc
Join Bella on her journey to find love and acceptance.
Bella is a gentle young bunny whose beautiful spots make her one of a kind. When she notices she looks different from her siblings, she wonders if she truly belongs. Along her journey, she meets new friends who teach her an important lesson: being different is something to be proud of.
A comforting, uplifting story
Bella's Beautiful Spots is a comforting, uplifting story for children and families, created to encourage kindness, confidence, and self-acceptance.
This gentle woodland tale helps children understand that differences are natural, beautiful, and worth celebrating. It is especially meaningful for children who feel different—and for helping other children learn how to be kind, inclusive, and understanding.
- Being yourself is always enough
- You don't have to look like everyone else to belong
- Your differences make the world more colorful
This book is perfect for
- Ages3–8
- Families and caregivers
- Classrooms and counselors
- Children with vitiligo or visible differences
- Anyone who loves a gentle story with a powerful message
What is vitiligo?
Understanding Vitiligo, the Bella Way
Vitiligo (vit-ill-EYE-go) is something that changes how skin (or fur) looks. It causes lighter patches where color is missing—but it does not hurt, and it is not something you can catch.
- Vitiligo is safe and not contagious
- It doesn't change who someone is inside
- It makes people look special and unique
Everyone's body tells its own story, and vitiligo is just one way that story can look different—and beautiful.
A story that helps children feel seen
Bella is the only bunny in her family with spots caused by vitiligo, a condition that makes some parts of her fur lighter than others. While her siblings are all the same color, Bella's fur tells a different story—and at first, that makes her feel unsure of herself.
When Bella meets a squirrel with a multi-colored tail, a deer with one antler larger than the other, and a butterfly with different wings, she begins to see that everyone has something special that makes them unique.
Meet the creators
Hi! I'm Laura Ball
Laura Ball, an Ohio native, has been passionate about writing since a young age, with her love for storytelling sparked from reading young adult mysteries. Laura is the author of the cozy mysteries Whiskers in Trouble, The Whiskered Witness, and Whiskers of Suspicion. Her latest cozy—Ashes & Alibis—is the first book in the Cozy Addict Mystery series.
She is also the author of the children's picture books, The Adventures of Hank the Hamster, Bella's Beautiful Spots, and the award-winning children's book series Albert the Donkey Meets a New Friend, Albert the Donkey Finds a Treasure, and Albert the Donkey Solves a Mystery.
Hi! I'm Amanda Morton
Amanda Morton lives in Ohio, where she works in both human and veterinary medicine and spends her days caring for others—big and small. Inspired by her own experience with vitiligo, she created this story about a sweet bunny with beautiful spots.
Amanda hopes this book helps children discover that what makes them different can also make them wonderful.
FREE Downloadable Content!
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