Title: Freckleface Strawberry
Author: Julianne Moore
Illustrator: LeUyen Pham
Genre: realistic fiction
Theme: acceptance and self-worth
Characters: The main character is a little red-haired girl who has earned the nickname "Freckleface Strawberry. Other characters include her family members, schoolmates, and a baby and her mother who give advice to Freckleface Strawberry.
Summary of Book: Poor Freckleface Strawberry! She hates her little freckles and does all sorts of silly things to get rid of them. She thinks she's SO different and that people only notice her freckles. She soon realizes that her attempts to blend in aren't worth their misery. By the end of the story, she has learned that her having a million friends to play with is much more important than having a million freckles.
Comments: I am usually leery of celebrity-written books and their hype, but I really enjoyed Julianne Moore's story. As a child she was called Freckleface Strawberry and suffered with low self-esteem because of her freckles. This book does a great job of telling her story and relating a subtle message: even if you think you're SO different, your real friends will focus on your friendship, not your difference. The illustrations my LeUyen Pham are darling and almost cartoon-like. Many different cultures and faces are portrayed, adding to the theme of acceptance in this book.
Grade level: appropriate for preschool on up, reading level is about second grade
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