Guji Guji

Guji Guji. written and illustrated by Chih-Yuan Chen. 2004. 32p. La Jolla, CA: Kane/Miller Book Publishers.

Author/Illustrator Website: none

Medium: gouache and pen

Awards and Honors: ALA Notable Children's Book

Annotation:
When a crocodile hatches from a strange egg that has rolled into her nest, Mama Duck names it Guji Guji and raises him as her own, but three bad crocodiles who want to eat his family cause Guji Guji to question his identity.

Personal Reaction:
Personally, I love picture books that feature eggs which hatch unexpected babies. Eastman's Flap Your Wings! and Lionni's An Extraordinary Egg are two classics and Guji Guji is a great addition to this genre. 


Like Flap Your Wings!, Guji Guji is the story of a crocodile that hatches into a family of birds- specifically ducks in this case- and is lovingly accepted. In fact, Guji Guji's duck mother doesn't even notice that Guji Guji is any different from her other babies. 


Guji Guji learns to swim and waddle and dive along with his duck siblings and is quite happy... until the day that three bad crocodiles appear. The nasty crocodiles- who want to eat his family- cause Guji Guji to question his own identity. The whole story has a happy ending, though, as Guji Guji realizes that even though he looks "different" than the rest of his family, that he is loved and he belongs.