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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gales of Giggles!, March 24, 2001
If you are like me, you love Clifford, the Big Red Dog. Do you know the story of how he came to live with Emily Elizabeth?One day, Emily Elizabeth's friend, Martha, got a new dog. She tells Emily Elizabeth all about finding the dog at the pet store. Then she asks how Emily Elizabeth acquired Clifford, the Big Red Dog. "When I was little I lived in the city. I didn't have a dog." Then one day a neighbor's dog had puppies, and he offered Emily Elizabeth one. All of the puppies looked different from each other, and one was very tiny. The neighbor said to Emily Elizabeth, "Don't pick him. He's the runt. He'll always be small and sick." But Emily Elizabeth liked the idea of having a puppy who needed her. So she took the little red puppy, and named him Clifford. Clifford was so tiny that they couldn't find a collar small enough for him. He had to be fed with a doll's baby bottle. He would get lost in the house, sometimes even in Daddy's shoe! He would sleep in bed with Emily Elizabeth. One day, Mother noticed that he seemed bigger. So did Emily Elizabeth. The collar now was too small. He couldn't fit into the basket meant for sleeping. He returned to Emily Elizabeth's bed, but soon he took all the room! When they would walk, Clifford was bigger than even the big dogs. The neighbors began to notice how large Clifford was. Then the landlord complained. The police came and said Clifford would have to go. But they could not get him out, because he was bigger than the doors! Finally, a crane was able to lift him into a moving van that took Clifford to the country where Emily Elizabeth's uncle lived. Clifford and Emily Elizabeth really missed one another. Then, Daddy got a new job working with her uncle, and they all moved to the country. Emily Elizabeth and Clifford were reunited. Emily Elizabeth said, "Clifford, stop growing. You are just right." Then Emily Elizabeth politely asks Martha to tell about her dog again. Martha decides to change the subject. This book has many wonderful qualities. First, it addresses the issue of appearances being deceiving. Clifford looked like a runt, but became a giant. Second, it shows that potential can be much different from current reality. The exact nature of Clifford's great ability to be a rewarding dog is not apparent as a puppy. Third, children get a chance to realize that cute baby animals will not always be like that. Many children ask for a pet, and then will not take care of the pet when the baby animal becomes an adult. You can have more realistic conversations about your pet plans after reading this story. Fourth, it turns the idea of having an adult pet into an asset. Fifth, the story is told in such a way that your child will be laughing continuously. That will make it easier to remember the story, and will encourage learning to memorize the words. That is helpful in a beginning reader. Sixth, the story also encourages you to make the best of whatever comes your way. Although Emily Elizabeth did not have the reality of Clifford, the Big Red Dog, in mind when she picked him, she learned to love and enjoy his adult self as much as his puppy self. After reading this story, you can have a wonderful conversation about how relationships change between parents and children as the children grow up. You can help your child understand how taking on more responsibility is part of the maturation process, and doesn't mean you care for her or him any less. In fact, encouraging independence is a sign of true love. In this way, your relationship can evolve in many positive ways, as Emily Elizabeth's did with Clifford. Look on the funny side of what happens . . . always!
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by Norman Bridwell
by Norman Bridwell
by Norman Bridwell
by Norman Bridwell
by Norman Bridwell
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