You Are My Best Friend

K-Gr 2—In a prehistoric world, there is a "mean and fierce, nasty and selfish" Tyrannosaurus. While terrorizing a herd of small Styracosauruses, the Tyrannosaurus falls off a cliff into the ocean. Saved from drowning by a gentle and gigantic Elasmosaurus, the Tyrannosaurus lies about his true identity to his new friend. From that time on the two dinosaurs do everything together. The story reaches a climax when the Elasmosaurus is wounded by an ocean bully. The devastated Tyrannosaurus pours his heart out to his unconscious friend. Happily, the Elasmosaurus recovers and the two vow to be together "forever and ever." Originally published in Japan in 2004, this friendship story has a strong antibullying message tempered by bold illustrations and a fablelike narrative. The flat illustrations use thick black lines and an unusually saturated yet captivating palette. Overall, the illustrations are humorous and dynamic, although occasionally the darker backgrounds make it difficult to read the black text. The narrative, which begins on the title page, has moments of wry humor, as well as touching scenes of friendship. The flow among dialogue, thoughts, and narrative is easy and natural. Owing to the lengthier text, this title is a great choice for a lower elementary read-aloud.