A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni is the charming story of a chameleon searching for his own color, who ends up finding a true friend. Re-published this year by Random House, we sent this beautifully illustrated book off to our research panel for review, thinking it a good choice for fall – with the changing colours of the leaves.
Here's what panel members Sharon and Jennifer had to say about it.
urbanmoms.ca: What was your initial impression of this book?
Jennifer: It felt like a classic. Enduring and simple.
Sharon: I liked the artistic style of the book very much. The colourful lizard contrasted against the white background and was extremely eye-catching.
urbanmoms.ca: What do you think are the key messages of this book? Did they resonate with you?
Sharon: This book encourages one to accept themselves as they are. It demonstrates the value of friendship and love.
Jennifer: To be who you are, and not worry about everyone else.
urbanmoms.ca: What would another mother find most appealing about this book?
Jennifer: The pictures are attractive, the story is simple and the message is sweet.
Sharon: The message of the book (i.e. friendship, self-acceptance) and the artistic style of the book. It is simple, yet extremely colourful, which is eye-catching to both children and adults.
urbanmoms.ca: Would you recommend this book to a friend?
Sharon: Definitely. It teaches great moral messages, and helps teach young children about colours. This was a great book. My child enjoyed it, as did I.
Jennifer: I'd definitely recommend this book for any toddler or pre-schooler's bookshelf; it's a good lesson on believing in yourself and how important it is that we all have our differences. All three of my children enjoyed this book, obviously taking different things from it. The baby loved the colours, the five year old liked the story, and the seven year old liked the message.
Leo Lionni wrote and illustrated more than 40 highly acclaimed
children's books. He received the 1984 American Institute of Graphic
Arts Gold Medal and was a four-time Caldecott Honor winner—for Inch by Inch, Frederick, Swimmy, and Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse. Leo Lionni died in October of 1999 at his home in Tuscany, Italy.
This book was given to my daughter for her 1st birthday and is now one of her favourites! I love reading it with her because of the beautiful illustrations and message.
I have to agree, this is one great book! It has a similar feel to an Eric Carle book, think “Hungry Catepilar”. All three of my boys have enjoyed this book very much, and I have even used it to open up a discussion with my oldest son when we had the ever lasting nag for Wheelies Running shoes. We spoke about how the chameleon wanted so much to be something other than himself and how Liam (my eldest) doesn’t need to have fancy gadgets to make him a better person.
I would recommend this book to anyone.
Tara