"Giraffes Can't Dance"

Giraffes Can't Dance
Author: Giles Andreae
Illustrator: Guy Parker-Rees
Genre: Picture Book
Subgenre: Folktale
Theme: Self satisfaction, trying your best
Primary/Secondary Characters: Gerald the giraffe/the jungle animals
Date of Publication: Year 1999
Publishing Company: Orchard Books, Scholastic

Summary: Gerald the giraffe had no talent for dancing. No matter how hard he tried, he could not dance like the other jungle animals. One day, while alone and sad, a grasshopper told him that if he tried and found music he liked, he could dance to his own beat. He listened to the sounds in the night, and the grasshopper played his violin for Gerald, and he began to dance. The jungle animals were astonished that Gerald could actually dance, and he told the animals that "we can all dance when we find music that we love". Children would enjoy this book as Gerald the giraffe is a lovable character, and he shows them that they can do whatever they want if they set their mind to it.