Why Am I Different?

Rating:
Summary: Our "differences" make us all unique and special!
Review: A gently written and beautifully illustrated book on what makes us all different and uniquely ourselves. Pre-schoolers as well as elementary age children will want to read this one over and over again. (I raised my two sons with this book and it continued to be one of their favorites). Dora Leder's pencil illustrations are almost "photo" perfect and capture the snapshots of activities and differences that author, Norma Simon so quietly describes. "Why Am I Different" (no matter how many times I read it with my children) always invoked dialogue and opportunities for discussions on understanding the many differences that make people so unique. This is a gem of a book and I am delighted to see it is still so ready available.

Rating:
Summary: excellent for starting a discussion
Review: This book demonstrates a wide variety of ways in which people are different by having a different child on each page who tells about one things that is different about themselves. The types of differences vary from hair color, size, age, likes, grandparents, house,language, adoption, and more. It doesn't seem preachy at all to me. It just presents a variety of ways in which people are different, and most show contentment with being who they are. Some express the negative feelings that can come from not being "one of the crowd", as well.

Rating:
Summary: Good message damaged by preachy presentation
Review: While my 3-1/2 year old daughter seems to like this book well enough, I dislike reading it to her. The message is a positive one (we're all different in some way) and relies on interesting examples (food allergies, for example). However, the overall product is preachy and rather dull. Without a plot, just a series of kids who each describe the way in which they are different, it isn't much fun to read.