Camilla loves lima beans, but wont eat them because no other children like them. One day she wakes up with bright stripes across her face. From then on she turns into anything she eats or talks about. She then learns to deal with being different and made fun of by her classmates, until a old lady comes and gives her lima beans to eat. When she returns to normal Camilla decides that she doesnt care what anyone thinks and eats all the lima beans she wants. The cover design really sets this book off. The colorful stripes and big words attract children to read this story. The author gives a unique story to help children understand that different is not bad. The characters are very stereotypical in a funny way. For example when talking with the doctors, "Then the specialist went to work on Camilla. They squeezed and jabbed, tapped and tested." The detail and description in this story is excellent and the illustrations along with the character development go together to make a hilarious yet "deep" story plot. This book is written for transitional and fluent readers, but children of all ages would enjoy this story. This story could be used when discussing differences and doing what is right. Teachers could use it when working on writing with detail.
This is a great read aloud for any age. I read it to my sixth graders and my third graders and both classes loved this book. David Shannon has done it again. In this book he teaches a lesson of knowing who we are and not following the crowd. The main character, Camilla Cream is worried about what to wear the first day of school, as she has so many friends to impress. After trying on forty-two outfits she looks in the mirror and screams. She has broken out with a bad case of stripes. This is a hillarious story of what Camilla has to go through with her case of stripes. Davis Shannons illustrations add so much to the story. The cover itself will attract readers. I have decided that David Shannon is my new favorite author and illustrator. I highly recommend this book.
I have a four year old daughter who is easily frightened (we cant read Goldilocks and the Three Bears in our house), but she is more than okay with this book. In fact, it is one of her favorites. Some have complained that the artwork is creepy and disturbing. But I think it is different and attention grabbing. David Shannon is a talented artist and his story about nonconformity definitely gets the point across. This is not the same old book all over again. It is fresh and interesting and both my children love it.
