Blue Chameleon by Emily Gravett

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Blue Chameleon is a deceptively simple book that capitalises on the ability of some species of chameleons to change their skin coloration. In fact, if you read the main body text alone, you’d think it’s just a beautifully illustrated book on colours — but that would be doing it a grave injustice.

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Monkey and Me by Emily Gravett

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In Monkey and Me, a little girl brings her stuffed monkey on an adventure to see some animals — possibly to the zoo, although it isn’t specified in the story. The simple repetitive text: “Monkey and me, monkey and me, we went to see, we went to see some __________” will appeal to young toddlers who will be able to memorise and recite the whole book easily — and make them want to read it again and again — while the double-page illustrations of the girl and her stuffed monkey, as well as the different animals that they see, are bold and exuberant.

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The Odd Egg by Emily Gravett

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In The Odd Egg, a duck feels left out when she sees that all the other birds have each laid an egg and are excitedly waiting for them to hatch. So when she finds a large white egg with green spots, she is very happy even though the other birds openly disparage it. One by one, the birds’ eggs hatch, until only duck’s egg is left. Then finally, when it hatches, the baby emerges to give the other birds (and the readers!) a big shock.

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