Susanna Leonard Hill has a feature on her blog called Perfect Picture Book Friday. It is a list of “perfect” picture books recommended by all sorts of people. I chose this book because it is a fun story about speaking up!
I Am Not a Chair!
By Ross Burach
40 pages – ages 4+
Published by HarperCollins on February 14, 2017
Theme/Topic- Speaking up for yourself
Genre- Fiction
Opening and Synopsis- Opening: “On Giraffe’s first day in the jungle…
he felt something wasn’t right.“
Synopsis from Publisher: “Grab the best seat in the house with this funny, touching picture book about a giraffe who keeps being mistaken for a chair!
From the acclaimed author-illustrator of There’s a Giraffe in My Soup, Ross Burach, comes a curious tale about finding one’s courage and standing up for oneself. Full of vibrant and playful illustrations and hilariously absurd logic, kids will want to read it again and again.
Could there be anything worse for Giraffe? Maybe being sat on by a skunk or smooshed by two hapless hippos, or worst of all—cornered by a hungry lion? No one seems to notice that Giraffe is not standing around just to be sat upon. Will he be able to find his voice and make his friends realize who he really is?”
What I Thought- Ross Burach already showed his prowess with creating picture books with “There’s a Giraffe in My Soup!” (see my review HERE!), and let me tell you – he hasn’t lost anything with his next! I like the whimsy of the story, and how it handles being assertive in a simple way. Kids will laugh at the complete improbable-ness and funny situations, and won’t even realize they are learning! Mr. Burach is a great author who really understands what kids want in a picture book. I can’t wait to see what else he comes up with!
Activities and Resources- There is a great article about why and how to encourage assertiveness HERE at Liveyourlifewithyourkids.com!
There is also a really good list at Momentsaday.com with games you can play to help build assertive qualities for children HERE!
Check out the book’s trailer!
To find more Perfect Picture Books please visit Susanna Hill’s blog HERE!
