A Bad Case of Stripes

"What we have here is a bad case of stripes. One of the worst I've ever seen!"Camilla Cream loves lima beans, but she never eats them. Why? Because the other kids in her school don't like them. And Camilla Cream is very, very worried about what other people think of her. In fact, she's so worried that she's about to break out in...a bad case of stripes!

Winner of North Carolina Children's Book Award (Picture Book) 2002 Winner of Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award (Grades K-3) 2002 Winner of Black-Eyed Susan Award (Picture Book) 1999 Runner-up for Buckaroo Book Award 2000 Short-listed for California Young Reader Medal (Primary) 2001 Short-listed for Virginia Readers Choice Award (Primary) 2001 Short-listed for Young Hoosier Book Award (Grades K-3) 2001 Short-listed for Flicker Tale Children's Book Award (Picture Book) 2002

“Stephanie Zvirin (Booklist, January 1 & 15, 1998 (Vol. 94, No. 9 & 10)) Camilla, who loves lima beans but won''t eat them because it''s not cool, finds that deferring to others isn''t all it''s cracked up to be. In fact, her desire to please and be popular causes her some spectacular problems: she suddenly breaks out in stripes, then stars, then turns "purple polka-dotty" at the behest of a delighted classmate. Her weird mutations, which stymie doctors and send the media into a frenzy, become more and more extreme until she finally blends into the walls of her room--her lips the red-blanketed mattress on her bed, her eyes the paintings on the wall. Will she never be herself again? Shannon''s over-the-top art is sensational, an ingenious combination of the concrete and the fantastic that delivers more than enough punch to make up for the somewhat heavy hand behind the story, and as usual, his wonderfully stereotypic characters are unforgettable. The pictures are probably enough to attract young browsers (Camilla in brilliant stripped glory graces the jacket), and the book''s irony and wealth of detail may even interest readers in higher grades. Try this for leading into a discussion on being different. Category: For the Young. 1998, Scholastic/Blue Sky, Horn Book (Horn Book Guide, Fall 1998) A girl obsessed with what people think about her contracts an ailment that literally turns her into whatever anyone--classmates, doctors, etc.--decides she should be. The story is heavy-handed, but the girl''s graphically depicted symptoms, from multicolored stripes to twigs and other spiny appendages protruding from her body, contribute to the dark comedy of the retro-style paintings. Category: Fiction. 1998, Scholastic, 32pp. Ages 5 to 9. Rating: 4: Recommended, with minor flaws. Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, 1998) Camilla Cream wants to fit in, so she conforms, denying herself the things she craves--lima beans, for example--if the other kids frown upon them. She wakes up one morning covered head to toe with party-colored stripes--not the state of affairs aspired to by a conventionalist, but it''s only the beginning of her troubles. Her schoolmates call out designs and Camilla''s skin reacts: polka dots, the American flag--"poor Camilla was changing faster than you could change channels on a T.V." Specialists are called in, as are experts, healers, herbalists, and gums. An environmental therapist suggests she "breathe deeply, and become one with your room." Camilla melts into the wall. It takes a little old lady with a handful of lima beans to set Camilla to rights. Shannon''s story is a good poke in the eye of conformity--imaginative, vibrant, and at times good and spooky--and his emphatic, vivid artwork keeps perfect pace with the tale. 1998, Blue Sky/Scholastic, $15.95. Starred Review. ”

IRA Children's ChoicePennsylvania Young Readers' Choice Award* "Shannon's story is a good poke in the eye of conformity--imaginative, vibrant, and at times good and spooky--and his emphatic, vivid artwork keeps perfect pace with the tale." -- Kirkus Reviews, (starred review)"Shannon's over-the-top art is sensational, an ingenious combination of the concrete and the fantastic..." -- Booklist

David Shannon is the internationally acclaimed creator of more than 40 picture books, including No, David!, a Caldecott Honor Book, and his second New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year, and four more David picture books. Shannon's bestsellers include A Bad Case of Stripes, Duck on a Bike, and Too Many Toys. He lives in Southern California with his family and Roy, their West Highland white terrier.

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