The first giraffe ever to set hoof in France nearly 200 years ago, confounded everyone with its strangeness. Was it a horned camel? A tall horse? Or a spotted zebra?
Today it's still that very strangeness that appeals. The graceful, slow walk or lolloping gallop of a giraffe across the plains of Africa, the long neck swaying like an exotic plant above the treeline, yet its stoop to drink water so oddly bizarre, the curious stare when approached, the impossibly long eyelashes, the incredibly black tongue all make it the most appealing of animals.
It's not surprising then that giraffes pop up everywhere in picture books as the animal who struggles to dance, who gets its neck in knot, who is too tall for group photographs but is the very best star-counter and window-washer. This list of books draws on the qualities that make the giraffe a favourite for children who are beginning to understand that we are all different, but to be different can be an advantage.
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