Blue Chameleon

"It’s a kind of book of opposites, but there’s a narrative as well. On one of the pages the chameleon meets a banana, then turns himself yellow and mirrors the bananas shape. My children always laugh at the contorted chameleon! When the chameleon meets a pink cockatoo, he also tries to mirror it’s characteristics. Young children recognize the bird, but then when they’re a bit older they think it’s funny that the chameleon’s doing an impression. My favourite is what appears to be a plain white page, but then you see that the chameleon is just a raised outline. You can touch the page and feel him, but you can’t really see him. It’s a simple and quick book. Brilliant for your handbag, because you can just pull it out if you need an ‘emergency story’. I’ve got two copies, a board book and a hardback. I bought it in board so I could carry it about. Emily Gravett is so distinctive. All her books make me smile. She’s brilliant at creating characters and illustrating their expressions perfectly. Emily is very clever in the way that her words and pictures don’t say too much. She leaves just enough to the imagination. My children and I are hooked on her books."