I Am Ivan Crocodile!

by René Gouichoux, Julia Neuhaus (Illustrations)

A tale for explaining difference to children, both engaging and challenging Ivan is a very special six-year-old. There is something about the way he looks and moves that sets him apart from the others in his class. Ivan knows that he is different, and what’s more, he knows why. Inside, he is a crocodile. Ivan is a friendly crocodile who would love to be one of the gang, but the others don’t understand his crocodile ways. They taunt him and tease him, making him feel very much alone. By the end of Ivan’s story we take comfort in the fact that this young crocodile has found a way of feeling less alone as he takes his place in class with all the others. The book ends with a publisher's note to parents with suggested discussion questions.

36 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2015

Reviews

[Fatima Seraj Alam · Rating 3 out of 5]

The theme of the story is alienation and trying to belong. I like the collage style of illustration but Ivan keeps iterating he is a crocodile but he isn’t really (he just feels like it and it sets him apart) and that was confusing.