Caillou, My Friends

Anne Hutchings, a former elementary-school teacher-librarian with the
Durham Board of Education, is an educational consultant.

Preschool Caillou fans will get hours of enjoyment from this series of
coloring books featuring the young hero. Each double-page spread
consists of a large, simple picture to color along with a caption
describing what Caillou is doing. There is plenty of repetition so that
even the very young can combine the caption with the visual clues and
“read” what is happening. For example, in I Like to Play, Caillou
likes to play with his boats, Caillou likes to play with his plane,
Caillou likes to play with his truck.

In The Seasons, Caillou engages in activities peculiar to the seasons
in which they occur: Caillou makes castles in the sand (in summer),
Caillou plays in the leaves ( in the fall), Caillou makes a snowman (in
winter).

My Friends not only introduces playmates Julia, Vincent, and Philip, it
also lists some of the activities they all enjoy together: going for
walks, making music, and eating ice cream.

In I Like Animals, we learn that Caillou has a variety of animal
friends, both animate (cat, rabbit, birds) and inanimate (toy turtle and
toy ladybug).

Each of the four titles concludes with an opportunity for the reader to
tell something about himself such as, “My favorite season is …”
and “My best friend is …” All of these activity books are
recommended.