Being Different
Pink!
Submitted by Ms. Tess!
I am completely charmed by Pink! a story by Lynne Rickards, with pictures by Margaret Chamberlain. It’s the tale of Patrick, a penguin, who wakes up one morning to discover he’s turned pink. Of course, he’s quite alarmed by this. Whoever heard of a pink penguin? His mother sends him to the doctor, but the doctor can’t explain why Patrick is pink. You could be green if you were feeling sick. Or blue if you were very cold. But pink? He’ll just have to get used to it. But “boys can’t be pink” Patrick insists. Patrick’s dad shows him a book of birds including flamingos, and informs him boys can be pink! Patrick is slightly re-assured, but when he goes to school the next day he is mercilessly teased for being pink! He decides to pack it up and move to Africa to be with the flamingos. He swims all the way there! When he arrives, the flamingos are friendly enough, but Patrick still doesn’t quite fit it in. He realizes he belongs with the other penguins at the south pole, so he swims all the way home. When he gets there, his parents and schoolmates are so happy to see him! They ask him about his travels and rejoice in his homecoming. Eventually everyone gets used to Patrick being pink, and no one teases him anymore. This is a wonderful book to teach children that being different is OK, and to not be ashamed of anything that makes them stand out in a crowd. See this book listed in our catalog
Laurie
Submitted by Ms. Amanda!
Laurie by Elfi Nijssen and Eline van Lindenhuizen is a great story to help kids adjust to hearing aids, or to understand why someone they know uses hearing aids. Laurie doesn’t hear well, and that makes it hard for her to have friends, because she often has to ask them to repeat themselves, and look at her when they speak, so that she can read their lips. Kids often make fun of her, because they do not understand, and she often has to play alone on the playground. That makes her feel like she doesn’t belong. Laurie has a dog who is her friend. He doesn’t care that she doesn’t hear well. They understand each other just fine. One day, Laurie gets “hearing computers” to help her hear well. Now Laurie can hear kids on the playground, she doesn’t have to ask them to repeat themselves, and can hear everything around her just fine. Laurie is lucky, because now she can hear well, thanks to her hearing aids. Now she has friends, and feels like she belongs! See this book listed in our catalog
Pierre the Penguin
Submitted by Ms. Amanda!
Pierre the Penguin: A True Story by Jean Marzollo. I love penguins, and this story is quite endearing! It is based on a true story about a penguin named Pierre. The story is written in rhyme, so it flows and is fun to read. Pierre is an African penguin who lives at the California Academy of Sciences with twenty other penguins in the African Hall. African Penguins are different from other penguins, and do not like the ice. Once day when Pam, the Aquatic Biologist who cares for the penguins, was feeding them fish, she noticed something wrong with Pierre. He was going bald! He had lost most of his feathers, and was very cold. The other penguins were afraid of Pierre, since he looked so different without his feathers. Pam tried to help Pierre in many different ways, until one day she got the idea to make him a tiny wet suit to keep him warm and well. With the wet suit on, Pierre was warm, and could go swimming with his friends. After a few weeks, the wetsuit helped Pierre to grow back new feathers! At the end of this story there is a page where Pam answers questions about her job, and Pierre. This story is a great way to build new vocabulary, like wetsuit, bray, neoprene, and aquatic, and is illustrated in a bright, clear way to show the new vocabulary! See this book listed in our catalog
Little Pink Pup
Submitted by Ms. Catherine!
Sometimes, when you are different from the rest of your family members, you can feel out of place. In Little Pink Pup by Johanna Kerby we meet Pink, a premature piglet who just didn’t fit in with his pig family. His brothers and sisters were simply too big, and Pink could never get enough food. But while Pink didn’t fit with his piglet brothers and sisters, he was the perfect size to move into the house. Tink the family dog had just had a litter of pups and welcomed a foster pig too! Pink fit right in with his new dachshund brothers and sisters. The puppies were just the right size for him to play with. And, while he didn’t look anything like his new siblings, no one minded in the least! Eventually, Pink moved back out to the barn with the other pigs, but his doggie friends still come to visit and play. Pink’s story is true, and Little Pink Pup is filled with photographs of Pink and his family as they eat, sleep, grow, and play together. This is a wonderful book for any child who loves animals and wants to see real pictures of piglets and puppies. It can also be a nice story for any child who is feeling out of place, and needs a reminder that no matter how different you are there is always a place in the family for you. See this book listed in our catlog