Chapter 1: Survivors
Chapter 2: A World Without Mammals
Chapter 3 Earthquake
Chapter 4: Cito
Chapter 5: The Seeds of Crisis
Chapter 6: Meeting People
Chapter 7: A New Life
Chapter 8 Conspiracy
Chapter 9: A Narrow Escape
Chapter 10: Finding a Doctor
Chapter 11: A New Hope
Chapter 12: A Familiar Song

★ Books selected by the Junior Library Guild of America
★ A science fiction graphic novel by the Eisner Award-winning author (the Oscars of comics)

Earth in 2101, when a solar cataclysm has caused the extinction of almost all mammals.
A long journey to create a vaccine that will save the remaining human race.

In 2049, the solar cataclysm began.
Because of this, mammals living more than 9 meters underground cannot withstand the altered solar radiation and die within hours.
This symptom is called sun sickness.
Survivors living in underground bunkers only come to the surface at night to collect scarce supplies.
The night world is dangerous.
Because there are raiders who raid other bunkers.
In a ruined world, you can only survive if you don't stand out from the crowd.
In contrast, the daytime world of the earth is a peaceful place where humans do not exist.
In this world, two people live: Flora and Elvie.
Thanks to regular use of the monarch butterfly medication developed by Flora, these insects can survive exposure to sunlight and travel thousands of kilometers from California to Mexico.
Because the scales on the wings of monarch butterflies are essential for continuing to produce monarch butterfly medicine and developing a vaccine against sunlight disease.

Hope keeps us alive

In the lonely, cautious (you never know when a predator might show up) but peaceful world of Flora and Elvie, an unexpected guest appears one dawn.
I encountered a little boy named Shito in front of a bunker that had collapsed due to an earthquake.
Flora tells Elvie to leave with Sito, saying that all the bunker residents are probably dead.
However, Elvie, who did not give up on finding Shito's parents, secretly leaves a note and a monarch butterfly medicine in front of the bunker for Flora.
A reckless choice that could put the party in danger if discovered by marauders.
As expected.
A few days later, new people appear before Flora and her group, and their smooth journey falls into chaos.

"Why We Chase Butterflies in a Disaster" is a science fiction graphic novel depicting human life in a disaster situation, and is the work of Jonathan Case, an Eisner Award-winning author known as the Oscar of the comics world.
It stands out for its immersive storytelling, solid scientific basis, and meticulous composition that doesn't waste a single picture or line of dialogue.
There's one more element here that makes it impossible to put the book down until you reach the last page.

Flora and Elvie live alone after losing their family in a raid by marauders when Elvie was three years old.
Although Flora could survive with just the monarch butterfly medicine, she loses sleep over the development of a vaccine to save humanity from tragedy.
And he makes Elvie study biology, write a research journal (her handwriting is very clear), read Shakespeare's plays, and study history.
Elvie, who is only ten years old, escapes with young Sito in a desperate situation, and on a typhoon night, she crosses the sea by kayak alone to save Flora, who is in danger of dying from tetanus, and heads to another bunker where there may be marauders.

Watching these two, who, despite the difficulties of the situation, cling to their humanity and continue their journey to the Monarch Butterfly Forest in Mexico, where they hope to find a vaccine and where Elvie's parents might still be alive, brings a familiar and desperate feeling to my heart.
Flora and Elvie's unwavering spirit resonates with the age-old message that life goes on if we hold onto hope no matter what comes our way, and readers are drawn along with them until the end of their journey.

Biodiversity and the Future of Humanity

"Why We Chase Butterflies in a Destroyed World" is also the story of the monarch butterfly.
Monarch butterflies are real insects that migrate from southern Canada to Mexico according to the changing seasons.
For a long time, millions of monarch butterflies lived in the California region of the United States.
However, now, due to the destruction of their habitat by human activities, only a few thousand remain.
The author creates an ironic future world in which a butterfly, driven to extinction by humanity, becomes the key to humanity's survival.
This setting, which embodies the author's earnest wish that biodiversity, while important in itself, must also be preserved for humanity, is another important reason why we should pay attention to this book now.

“A meticulously designed and dramatically constructed post-apocalyptic future that will keep you glued to your screen for a second.” -Hon Book

“Keeps you guessing until the last page.” -Kirkus Reviews

“Filled with vibrant exploration, adventure, and discovery.” -Booklist