A good tactic to kill enemies from a safe distance is to boot boulders across the screen.
Controls
There is an option for 'Lefty' or 'Righty' D-pad positions that can be tweaked to suit your play style if you are struggling with the default controls.
Map
If you want a bigger map of the level you can either zoom the screen out in the 'Backpack' menu or pinch it in-game.
Paths
If you are careful you can avoid Fireflies and Butterflies as they follow set patrol paths which are hinted at by trails on screen.