Clifford the Big Red Dog (skip)
I vaguely remember enjoying Clifford the Big Red Dog stories when I was little. But as I reread them now, they are not my favorite.
Illustrations with most of the Clifford the Big Red Dog books we’ve seen are cartoony, simple drawings - of which there is nothing wrong with them, little ones tend to love them, they just won’t be winning any awards.
Clifford Gets A Job (1965): Again, this is a very simple book. And it’s cute at first, Clifford, being so big, needing tons of food. But my little one had questions and concerns about this one. First, they discuss sending Clifford away, which deeply concerned my little one. Second, and this is a minor comment, but there’s a rat and Clifford destroys a barn, both of these concerned my little one. Third, this is a reason to actually skip this story, there were bad men shooting at police and Clifford chases them down and is biting them in the end. It is most likely a product of the year it was written, back in the 1960s, when there was less concern over protecting the emotional well being of children.
Cautions: The two overall concerns we have about Clifford stories are: 1) Clifford’s size and color are difficult to explain to my little one. By the time my little one was big enough to understand imagination and reality, the book was too simple. This is the overall problem we have with the entire series. Clifford, a giant red dog, is the main character of a series that is aimed at little ones who are so young it makes it difficult to understand how a giant red dog could exist. 2) The style of writing is too simple. Clearly the audience is the littlest of the little ones, but my philosophy is not to dumb down our language and reading styles just because my little one is little. Little ones are able to understand far more complex interactions than most people give them credit for. However, simple as it was, it was entertaining for my little one.
