The Boy and the Octopus

About this book

Stanley loves snuggling his soft octopus. Every night, they dive into the sea of sleep together. Shy Stanley admires the way Octopus can disappear with camouflage every time there’s a threat. When some boys are mean to Stanley in the park, he wishes he could disappear too. He can’t even tell Dad about it.

But then he dreams that Octopus shoots ink at a sea monster. Perhaps Stanley, too, can use ink, in the form of drawings, to lessen the weight of his feelings? 

This is an absolutely beautiful book. The illustrations are stunning, with the underwater world particularly vibrant. The relationship between Stanley and his dad is delightful – Dad is sensitive and waits for Stanley to talk about his feelings with him. There is no other adult in the family dynamic, so a hug from Dad and, crucially, validation from Dad, is super important. The story acknowledges the difficulty of talking about feelings, and the celebration of drawing as an outlet is beautifully done.

This could start conversations about how to deal with emotions, which is always useful when reading with young children. Moving and gorgeous.

Stanley is happiest when dreaming about swimming through the sea with his friend Octopus. There, he is enchanted and content using camouflage to disappear when anything scary appears. However, in the real world things are very different. Bullies are making his life miserable. He can’t disappear from their cruel words, he can’t either find a way to communicate his problems to his father. But when Octopus decides to use ink to defend himself during their underwater adventures Stanley realises he too wants to be seen. Through pictures he is able communicate with his dad and realises that being seen, however scary, is far more empowering than disappearing.