A Parade of Elephants is an engaging story with less than 100 words -- 89 to be exact. Its brilliant brevity and illustrations are supported by simple concepts that capture the youngest of readers -- from counting, colors, and size to directions, opposites, repetition, and relationships. For all the wonder these all inspire, my 4-year old daughter has been fascinated.
The story is about five elephants marching along. Together as a group they make a parade. They stay with each other through every joyful adventure until the day is done. Then they spread their happiness across the sky in the form of stars and sleep until the next day's adventure.
 |
As we read this book each night, my daughter finds ways to keep it fresh and exciting. She loves to count every elephant on each page and every star in the sky, which is upwards of 50. She traces their parade route with her finger and makes up songs for the direction they are marching -- "Up, down, up, up, dooooown." But mostly she finds these elephants to be like the tight-knit family that has become her small preschool class. Though there are only five elephants, she has given them the same names as her friends at school. Every night she changes their names signaling to an always inquisitive mom who she played with that day and then finally divulging what fun they had.
No night reading this book is ever the same. So the joy is not only hers, but also an insightful discovery of mine.
 |
Kevin Henkes as the book's author and illustrator, yet again, does not disappoint. In fact, his story with so few words and brown ink and gouache illustrations bring children's imaginations to life and ignite a desire to tell their own stories of simple adventure and good fun.
A Parade of Elephants is now out in local bookstores and is available online.
DISCLOSURE: I was provided an advance copy of A Parade of Elephants to facilitate this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. To see videos and more fun of us reading this book, head over to @EastsideMacaroniKid and click the NEW BOOK highlight in our profile.
