A Bad Case of Stripes

Author: David Shannon
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Copyright: 1998
Genre: Picture/Fiction
Pages: 32
Reading Level: Ages 6 to 8 (Barnes and Noble)
Summary:Camilla Cream loves lima beans but she doesn’t eat them because other kids her age don’t like them and she is afraid of what the kids would think if they found out she liked them. In fact, Camilla is just all around concerned about what people think of her. When school starts, Camilla wakes up and finds herself broken out in stripes. She’s afraid to go to school because she thinks the kids will think she’s weird and won’t want to be around her. She feels fine but her parents call the doctor to see if he can help her. When the medicine he gives her doesn’t help, he says she can just go to school anyway because she is healthy. She goes to school and the kids make fun of her and say things like asking her to turn polka-dotty and she does. She even turns red white and blue with stars when they recite the Pledge of Allegiance. The doctor calls in specialists and experts but no one can help her. In fact when they are trying a special kind of therapy they tell her to blend with her room and she does just that. Pictures on the wall become her eyes, the dresser her nose and the bed her mouth. Finally a little old lady shows up and says she knows how to cure her. She goes in and pulls out some lima beans and asks Camilla if she likes them. Camilla says she doesn’t but secretly she wants them really badly. The lady says she must have been mistaken and as she is leaving Camilla calls her back and tells her the truth. She says she really loves lima beans and that she wants some really badly. The lady gives her some and she is cured! From that day on she eats lima beans and doesn’t care what other people think about it and she never broke out in stripes again.
Who would you recommend this book to? I would recommend this book to all young children.
Potential problems or conflicts: None
My reaction: I really liked this book! It was a lot of fun to read and I think it has a really good message.