The Colour Monster - Story Snug
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The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas

The Colour Monster is a great book to introduce children to the relationship between colour and emotions. We love Anna Llenas’ fabulous illustrations which complement the simple text and help a mixed up little monster to understand how each colour makes him feel.

The Story: The Colour Monster is a mix of colours so his friend, a little girl,ย takes him through each colour to help him understand how he is feeling. By the end of the story The Colour Monster is no longer rainbow coloured andย the girlย is confusedย by his final colour!

The girlย puts examples of each different colour in a jar and explains what each represents.ย The Colour Monster changes as a new colour is introduced, his facial expressions and body language also change to show how he feels. Yellow, Blue, Red, Black and Green are introduced along with the final colour – the colour of love! Inย contrastย the girl remains grey but she’s a warmhearted, caring friend. She offers support throughout the storyย and reassures The Colour Monster that she’ll be there for him, especially when he experiences more negative emotions.

Anna Llena’s illustrations are fabulous. Each page has its own colour scheme and we love the collage style. The two characters are hand drawn and the positions of their eyebrows and the styles of their eyes brilliantly portray their different expressions. Card, cardboard boxes and newspaper are all used for the illustrations, the newspaper boats are brilliant. Our favourite illustration towards the end of the book shows each coloured jar with the same colouredย monster, it’s a great way to summarise the colour concepts introduced in the book. The simple text is great for a beginner reader and we love the conversational style of the writing.

It is often difficult for a child to articulate how they feel and this is a brilliantly simple book for helping a child to understand their differing emotions. My eight year old was intrigued by the concept of colours matching emotions and rolled around the grass talking about how calm green makes her feel. I can imagine using this book in a Key Stage One classroom to help children explain how they feel, it’s often easier when they can link their experiences and feelings to the experiences of a fictional character.

The Colour Monster is an enjoyable book to read but also provides plenty of scope for discussion and exploration of emotions.

Age Range: 3 +

Author / Illustrator: Anna Llenas

Thank you to Templar Publishing for sending us a copy of The Colour Monster. We weren’t asked to recommend it but we think it’s a great book to help children to understand the colour of their emotions.

 


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19 responses to “The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas”


  1. Acorn Books avatar

    This book sounds really lovely and a great idea too to help little ones to think about and understand their emotions.
    #readwithme


    1. Catherine avatar

      It is often really hard for little children to understand their emotions. The Colour Monster does it in a very simple but effective way ๐Ÿ™‚


  2. Yet Another Blogging Mummy!!! avatar

    Sounds a great learning book. I was hoping for a look inside option when I clicked on your Amazon link, so I could check out the illustrations, but no such luck #readwithme


    1. Catherine Friess avatar

      It’s a great book for instigating learning. Here’s the link to sample illustrations on Anna’s website;

      http://www.annallenas.com/ilustracion-editorial/el-monstruo-de-colores.html#.V2jbOFckeQ0


      1. Claire Procter avatar

        oh yes they are fab illustrations


  3. BookBairn avatar

    I keep seeing this book everywhere at the moment and really want a copy! You’ve bumped it up the list again – you’re making a habit of that Catherine. My to buy list consists of lots of your recommendations! #readwithme


    1. Catherine avatar

      So happy to hear that my recommendations help to influence your book buying for BookBairn ๐Ÿ™‚


  4. Sarah MumofThree World avatar

    It sounds like a good book for helping kids understand their emotions. I know a little girl it would be very good for!


    1. Catherine avatar

      It’s a great book. Hopefully your little reader will enjoy it too ๐Ÿ™‚


  5. Sarah Ella (Mumx3x) avatar
    Sarah Ella (Mumx3x)

    Aww, this sounds like a lovely book! And I really like the fact the pages have there own colour schemes. It sounds very lovely indeed ๐Ÿ™‚ #ReadWithMe


    1. Catherine avatar

      It’s beautiful but there’s also lots of white space on the page so that the colours really stand out ๐Ÿ™‚


  6. Sarah | Boo Roo and Tigger Too avatar

    I like the idea of this book and a great way for children to learn about emotions through colour


    1. Catherine avatar

      It is so simply and effectively done, a real first step to helping children differentiate between different emotions ๐Ÿ™‚


  7. Chantelle Hazelden avatar

    Love the sound of this, I always struggle to find nice books to do with emotions but the added element of colours is fantastic! Thanks for sharing with #ReadWithMe


    1. Catherine avatar

      This is a really simple way to differentiate between emotions but my eight year old still learnt something new from the book.


  8. Fiona - Coombe Mill avatar

    What a lovely way to explore feelings. #Tried Tested


    1. Catherine avatar

      It’s a great introduction to different emotions ๐Ÿ™‚


  9. karen avatar

    Such a lovely idea that kids can learn emotions through colour. Sounds like a lovely book.


    1. Catherine avatar

      It’s a really original book for helping children to learn colours too.