Elmer the
Patchwork Elephant
Author/Illustrator:
David McKee
“Elmer
the Patchwork Elephant” was always one of my favorites as a child. Recently
I was reading books to the children at the childcare center I work at I came
across a copy of the book and instantly picked it up. The range of bright
beautiful colours displayed on the cover and throughout the book are visually
appealing. Especially for children who appreciate these types of colours and
patterns.
Elmer is an
anthropomorphized Elephant with the characteristics of a child. Who is
different to all the other elephants, as instead of being grey his skin is a
colourful patchwork. Elmer tries to homogenous with the other elephants by
making his skin grey, however he discovers that being just like everyone else
is boring and depressing and decides that he much prefers his own special
patchwork.
The story
had a cardinal theme regarding the importance of being oneself, through the
protagonist Elmer’s experience of blending in and being exactly the same as all
the other elephants. The plot resolution in the book saw all the other
Elephants expressing their ‘true colours” through the actions of Elmer.
I believe that this focus’ on an important aspect of any youth with an emerging
and developing identity, instilling them with the idea that it is ok to share
your personality with others and it can produce positive results.
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