ELMER by David McKee

Even though this book was published in 1968, I had never heard of it nor read it until I became a mother. Call me a deprived child. I wish I had read this book when I was young, in grammar school, and wanting to fit in.

This is the story of Elmer, the patchwork elephant. He is the only elephant in the herd who is not all gray-colored. He has a great sense of humor and always makes the other elephants laugh. They all love him. But Elmer wasn't happy - he wanted to be all gray-colored like the rest of the herd. So he found a bush with gray berries and smushed them all over himself until he looked all gray like the rest of the elephants. When he went back to the herd, nobody recognized him but they were looking for Elmer, the patchwork elephant.

This is a great book because it discusses how special and unique you are - and why fitting in and looking like everyone else isn't all that great. This book would be good to re-visit during the ugly stages of puberty!!

Published 1968 by HarperCollins

I Miss You Every Day by Simms Tayback

This is a great book for kids who have a loved one who lives far away that they miss. Ricky could identify with this book because his aunt and uncle live several states away and he misses them and thinks of them all the time.

The little girl in the story wraps herself and sends herself as a letter to her loved one. The book follows the journey she takes through the postal system. There is also a picture and envelope in the front that your child can view.

Published 2007 by Viking

New Book: Llama, Llama Mad At Mama by Anna Dewdney

I loved Dewdney's Red Pajama book - and so did Ricky - afterall, who are the books for, right? So I grabbed this one and I liked it as well. It's a cute story and the rhyming of words is engaging for Ricky. I find that he pays more attention to the words I read if they rhyme.

Adorable Baby Llama goes to the Shop-O-Rama with his Mama and after a while- wants to go home. He has a tantrum in the shopping cart - which is something many moms can relate to. Mama gets Baby Llama to calm down so they can finish their shopping trip and go home. Now if he gets whiney in the cart and says he wants to go, I say "Come on - you don't want to be like Baby Llama, do you" and he says no and is an angel the rest of the trip. Thanks Anna Dewdney!

Here is a passage: "Cheezee Puffs and Oatie Crunch. What would llama like for lunch? Llama llama doesn't know. Llama Llama wants to GO."

This book was published by Viking in 2007.