Getting started with Clifford
Last year for my son's first birthday he received a big Clifford stuffed animal and a book from some friends of ours. The stuffed animal got played with right away... but due to my son's age we set the paperback book aside for awhile until he was much gentler with the pages. So, it wasn't until he was around 20 months old before we started reading to him this one more frequently.

Some details about the book
This book is written by Norman Bridwell and was first published by Scholastic in 1988. The book has 30 pages and only has a sentence or two on each page. The book is a colorful paperback book, so you will want to make sure your child is old enough to handle a paperback book... or for you to give close supervision.

Clifford's Birthday Party
The premise behind this story is that it is Clifford's birthday and they are having a party for him. Unfortunately, none of his friends show up. When Emily and Clifford went looking for his friends the reason that they didn't want to come is because they felt their presents weren't good enough for a special friend like Clifford. When Emily and Clifford reassured them they came to the party. Each of the gifts had its faults and didn't work well for Clifford until the last gift.... but you will have to read the book to find out the best gift of all!

Pictures
The pictures in the book are big, cute, and colorful. It is easy to not pay attention to the words and just stare at the pictures. The illustrator did a really great job of doing the pictures in this one.

My son's reactions
I think my son liked this book because it would keep his attention and he would flip it over for me to read it to him again. The book even got more liking after I had him watch an episode of Clifford on PBS. When I showed him the book again he had a look of recognition on his face and smiled big... which is what he does when he puts a connection together.

My reaction
I felt that the book was a hit for my son and I wouldn't mind reading more Clifford books to him in the future. The messages in the storyline are fine for children and the pictures are cute to look at.

Overall
I recommend this book to others and we will be looking for more Clifford books to read in the future!

Recommended: Yes