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Reviewed by Kristine Zimmerman for Readers' Favorite
If Only I Had by Haley McAndrews is a simple story about colors, diversity, and appreciating who you are. The colors in the story are represented by rectangles, and each one has a defining characteristic besides its color. Yellow has flowing hair, Green has ears, and White has eyes. White feels that she is very boring and wishes that she had a mouth like Purple, then she would be happy. White continues to think if only she had what someone else has, she will be happy. Then she realizes that with all those things, she's not herself. The illustrations, also by Haley McAndrews, are very clear and simple, just right for young children.
Even though If Only I Had seems like a simple book, there are multiple ways to use it with young children. Teachers and librarians can use it to teach colors and body parts, while also emphasizing the message of acceptance and appreciation of everyone's differences. As a former children's librarian, I could see this being turned into a fun flannel board story. Kids will love adding all the various parts to White as the story progresses. McAndrews' story and illustrations will capture the attention of the youngest readers. The simplicity and clarity of the pictures are ideal for toddlers who will be able to understand and follow the story without getting lost in a lot of clutter. If Only I Had is a fun story with an important message. Kids are never too young to start learning to love and appreciate their uniqueness.
