My Friend Isabelle Hardcover – October 1, 2003

We love this book! As the mother of a baby diagnosed at birth with down syndrome I was looking for a way to give a very basic explanation of down syndrome to our older children. When my son was born I had a 3 y/o daughter and a 6 y/o son and this was the perfect book for my 3 y/o. Not so many details as to overwhelm/confuse her, but enough to explain that her baby brother was going to be a little different and that was okay! The book is written from the point of view of a little boy named Charlie. Example text- "Even though we are the same age, we are different. I am tall and Isabelle is short. I run fast, Isabelle takes her time. We go down the big slide at the park, we both like to do it ourselves." It is great that it talks about not only their differences but also the similarities. I love that it never mentions anything about the fact that Isabelle has down syndrome until you get to a short paragraph at the very end of the book that talks about the real Isabelle. While it was a little too simple for my older son ( We'll Paint the Octopus Red  was a better one for him) it is definitely a keeper!

My daughter-in-law, who has two "home grown" and two children with Down Syndrome who were adopted by her and my son, read this book to two elementary school classes. She wanted to teach the children about special needs children and accepting everyone.She found it very helpful, realistic, and well illustrated. I bought a copy for my other son and daughter-in-law who have four children. I want to help my grandchildren understand their cousins as well as any friends they meet with special needs. This book shows that we are all differently abled, in that Isabelle could still do the same things her friend did, but sometimes it took her longer, or she had to work harder at it. She had the same emotions and loved the same things. I would recommend this book for all parents and teachers.

I chose 5 stars because I liked how simple the story was, but the message of the story says a lot. I liked that it didn't just point out that Isabelle has a disability but rather focused on both of their abilities. I would recommend this book to anyone.

This is a great book to introduce differences in children. It’s a very sweet story and my 6-year-old loves it and wants to meet Isabelle someday

Beautifully written and great pics...for kids with or without Down Syndrome. Great read for teachers to share with class .

I love that the story highlights a friendship between two kids that have some differences and some things that are the same. It's a great way to help kids understand more about people with Down syndrome and other disabilities and to clearly show that getting to know people and being a friend, despite differences, is a wonderful thing.

I can't praise this book enough. The illustrations and straightforward story line appeal to children while the message is one all aldults need to see. As the mother of a Down Syndrome child, I was overjoyed at how clearly the message came through that Down Syndrome kids are kids first. They enjoy all the usual childhood activities and enjoy friendships with thier non-Downs peers as well. I plan on purchasing this book for our local public library and our elementary school library as well.

Valued book to help child understand her little sister.

A book that gently shows that we don't all have to like the same things or do things the same way. You can be friends and be different.

I look after a 2 year old girl with Down syndrome, this is a fantastic book to help the other children in our class understand about their friend! This is great.

So cute, I cannot wait to present it at the yearly Downs meeting in March

We love this book!

My daughter has Down Syndrome, so I bought this book for her daycare so that the children could have a better understanding of why she is a bit different. Everything about it is adorable and perfect!!!:)