Deep in Malawi, in the heart of Africa, lay Lake Ticklewater. It was the home of many creatures, but especially frogs, who lived there among the stones and wild plants. No one could remember why, but the Lake Ticklewater frogs were all blue. Apart from that, they were ordinary frogs.

Biriwita lived among a small community of happy frogs until one day he received an invitation to the famous Croak College, The best college in all of Malawi. He was nervous about leaving his family but Biriwita wanted to follow his dream, so he left for the college. When he arrived all the frogs were green and they laughed at him because he was blue. All the teasing and nasty words made Biriwita sad and scared so he hid from everyone. Biriwita is sitting alone watching the other frogs having fun in the water when he sees impending danger. A crocodile is slipping into the pond!
What will Biriwita a do? Can he save the green frogs?

Of course this story has a happy ending with all the frogs, green and blue, getting along.

The Frog Who Was Blue is a story about following your dreams even in the face of adversity and that someone being different isn’t a bad thing. Everyone can do great things.

The illustrations by Naomi Powell are in a freehand style and are playful and subdued.
I love Biriwita’s little pet snail who is always close by (with his little snail trail behind him) during Biriwita’s journey. A delightful addition!
You can view Naomi’s distinct artwork on her website. www.naomipowell.com

The double entendre in the title is one the children easily understood when I explained it to them.

Recommended for ages 3 – 7 years. ( )

I love frogs so I was partial to this book before I even read it. I've read other books by this author before, but I like this one the best because it is geared to younger children so it's a book that can be shared out loud with someone. I just happen to have a three-year-old grandson to whom I can read it! The story is a cute one, about bullying, about cliques, about being different, and about learning to like who you are and also to like someone who is different than you.

My only gripe about the story is that the blue frog had to do something outstanding in order to be appreciated by the in-crowd of green frogs. Maybe this is just like life, but I wish it weren't so.

By the way, is it just coincidence that my grandson's favorite color is blue?

The illustrations by Naomi Powell are cute and funny. Be sure to note that the inside of the back cover is of the blue and green frogs playing "leap frog". Adorable! ( )

This lovely little book was written to support the World Medical Fund (WMF), a medical charity working in Africa, which focuses on the regions most vulnerable children. It is a simple story of Malawi, who comes from Lake Ticklewater, deep in the heart of Africa. All the frogs there, including Malawi are blue (which, of course, got "I'm in Love With a Big Blue Frog" running nonstop through my brain). However, when Malawi gets accepted to Croak College, he finds out that no other students are blue, just him. The green frogs tease him and shun him, and poor Malawi is broken hearted. But things happen, as they often do in stories like this, giving children a chance to be exposed to the message that being different is not necessarily a bad thing.

As a retired pediatric nurse, who worked with disabled children, this was a common occurrence for the children and families to get through. Kids who look different, have equipment to help them walk, talk, breathe, pee, eat, write, talk, can all be treated like blue frogs. It's not always an easy fix, and though this book is a nice beginning, I found myself remembering Digby Wolfe's poem, Kids who are Different.

Here’s to kids who are different,
Kids who don’t always get A's,
Kids who have ears
Twice the size of their peers,
And noses that go on for days.

Here’s to the kids who are different,
Kids they call crazy or dumb,
Kids who don’t fit,
With the guts and the grit,
Who dance to a different drum.

Here’s to the kids who are different,
Kids with a mischievous streak,
For when they have grown,
As history has shown,
It’s their difference that makes them unique.

Disclaimer: this book was sent to me by the author for a fair and honest review. ( )