I love rich, vibrant colors. I’ve also heard that color helps stimulate the brain – maybe that’s why I like them? They make me feel smarter? At any rate, when I picked up “Clever Chameleon” by Ali Lodge, my eyes (and my brain) felt like they were having a feast. With a rich abundance of jungle green, brilliant yellow, and stunning fuchsia, there’s nothing wimpy or pastel about this book.
One day in the jungle, all the animals decided to spend the day playing. The parrot suggests a game of hide and seek, and the elephant volunteers to be “it.” The leopard climbs up a tree, where her spotted fur helps her stay out of sight. The giraffe hides in the trees, his natural coloring also making him hard to see. After several minutes of looking, the elephant was starting to wonder if he had any chance at all of winning this game, but he finally spots the parrot, hiding in a bright flower. The parrot wasn’t terribly happy about that, but it’s how the game is played, after all!
The lion, tawny-colored, hid in some yellow grass, and the elephant walked right past him. The crocodile hid in with some logs floating in the river, and where do you think the stick bug hid? Well, with the sticks, of course!
As the game dragged on and the hour grew late, all the animals eventually came out of hiding – all but the chameleon. The elephant calls out for everyone to come in, and the chameleon appears, having blended in beautifully with his surroundings. But then we learn he’s been there all the time, hiding on each page. You and your child can flip through the book again and find all of his sneaky hiding places. That clever chameleon!
(This book was published in 2005 by Barefoot Books and was illustrated by the author.)
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