A Bad Case of Stripes
Picture Book Read Aloud
book summary
In Bad Case of Stripes, Camilla Cream loves lima beans until she gets teased for liking them. Camilla is embarrassed and tells her family that she won’t be eating lima beans anymore. Not long after, Camilla breaks out in stripes. She is covered from head to toe in colorful stripes. Her mom has the doctor check her out, but they can still not figure out what is causing the stripes. The doctors give her some medicine, but the stripes only get worse and even turn into other patterns such as clouds and a checkerboard.
Camilla’s changing skin is a visual representation of what happens to us on the inside when we give in to peer pressure. We become so afraid of being different and worried about what others will think of us that we end up becoming whoever or whatever people want us to be.
Camilla is seen by a couple more doctors, experts, and scientists, but there is still no explanation for her stripes. After several days with the unexplainable stripes, Camilla meets a lady who gives her lima beans. Camila decides to eat them. After Camilla eats the lima beans, she returns to her normal self without the stripes. She continues to eat lima beans and doesn’t let it bother her that everyone else thinks they are gross. After seeing that Camilla had returned to normal, the kind old lady says, “I knew the real you was in there somewhere.”
Camilla learned that it was better to eat her favorite lima beans and be happy with who she is than to wear stripes and continuously be changing based on what others thought of her. Camilla learns an important message about being “the real you” and not losing yourself trying to fit in or please others.
suggested teaching point
While reading A Bad Case of Stripes, point out to students the use of descriptive language in this book.
On page 7, the author says that Camilla’s stripes were “changing faster than you can change channels on a T.V.” The author chose those words so that the reader would know how fast Camilla’s stripes were changing. Think of something else that is faster than you can change the channels on the T.V. Turn to your partner and share your idea.
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