Published by Macmillan Children’s Books, 2010.

Chameleon is blue, in colour and mood. He’s feeling lonely because he has no one to play with. He spends the book trying to make a friend and, in doing so, changes his colour and shape to match everything and everyone he encounters.

The text is beautifully simple: two words per double page – a colour and an object – and the book is a lovely introduction to colours and patterns. I also love the variety of things that Chameleon tries to befriend, from a cowboy boot to a cockatoo.

Emily Gravett’s illustrations are stunning and brilliantly imaginative; I loved Chameleon’s different poses as he moulded himself into different shapes. There’s gentle humour in the illustrations but there’s a sadness too as Chameleon becomes increasingly despondent at his lack of success. Towards the end, he almost disappears as he turns white and vanishes into the page. Luckily, for Chameleon and the reader, there’s a joyful, full-colour happy ending.

Rating: 💙💙💙💙💙

Suitable from birth.

We borrowed this book from Solihull Libraries.