My Daddy Is a Giant

by Carl Norac, Ingrid Godon (Illustrator)

For this little boy, having a daddy is like having his own personal giant. His daddy is so tall the clouds can rest on his shoulders. His sneezes are as powerful as hurricanes. And there’s no safer place to be than in a giant’s strong arms. The imaginative text expresses a toddler’s love and admiration for his father, and the bright, bold illustrations capture the gentle humor. This is a warm and lively celebration of fathers—those true giants among men.

Genres: Picture Books, Family, Childrens, Storytime, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Carl Norac was born in Mons, Belgium, in 1960, the son of a writer and an actress. His early years were spent on a city housing estate, surrounded by playmates with whom he would act out Enid Blyton’s tales of adventure. His father later built a chalet and the family left the city to live in the middle of a forest. The importance of nature in his books comes from these years spent wandering among the trees. Every day after school, Carl went walking alone in the forest, making up stories. At the time, his parents owned a traveling puppet theatre and from the age of 12, Carl took part in their shows.

As a teenager, Carl wrote poems and received his first literary prize at the age of eighteen. This is when he started to travel throughout the world, mainly in Asia but also in Africa and the Americas. His children’s books are sometimes inspired by these travels that took him from sandy deserts to icy arctic wastes.

Carl Norac then worked in a number of different fields as a French teacher, a television scriptwriter, and a journalist before devoting himself completely to his passion—writing. In addition to poetry and plays, he has written about fifty children’s books and has received a lot of price ( He was also in the Honour List for The Andersen Prize in 2004 ) . Some of these, such as Les mots doux (I Love You So Much), have been translated more than twenty different languages with worldwide success. When he writes, the part he likes best is expressing the characters’ feelings. “A little bit of gentleness in a strange world.” These last years, he wrote some books directly in english, especially for Macmillan Chlidren’s Book ( with a american edition also by Clarion Books ). “My daddy is a giant” and “My mummy is magic”, the two first ones, are already translated in many languages. Carl Norac is the father of a little girl called Else.

Reviews

[Bionic Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely picture book for very young children, extolling the virtues of daddies:

“My daddy is a giant.
When I want to cuddle him,
I have to climb a ladder”

“When we play hide and seek,
my daddy has to hide
behind a mountain”

All the pictures are very cute, and show exactly what the child describes:

“When my daddy sneezes,
it’s like a hurricane.
It blows the sea away.”

“When my daddy laughs,
it’s like another hurricane.
All the leaves fly off the trees”

The pictures are cartoon-simple, in crayon and watercolour, and the entire book is a pleasure to read, showing the wonderful relationship between a father and his small child:

“I like it when my daddy says
‘You’re getting as tall as me!’”

(The illustration to this one shows a large man on his knees, with an adoring toddler looking up at him.)

The couple play games, goof around, and basically just enjoy being in each other’s company:

“My daddy is a giant,
and he loves me with
all his giant heart.”

A very special book. Perhaps it’s not strictly good enough to merit four stars, but for me it is. You see I’m going to give it to my tiny cousin, whose daddy is now a widower. I think it’s just perfect, and hope they will too.

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,85 stars - English hardcover

Naar dependance op het AZC. Asielzoekers centrum dagopvang.

[Shaunterria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Used this title for a Big and Small storytime; wishes I'd saved it for Father's Day instead. A sweet story, the fact that it is a hyperbole of a child's perspective will definitely be lost on younger readers. They will think he is a literal giant. Unfortunately, the text is so simple it may not engage slightly older readers that can understand that the narrator is exaggerating. I will probably use this as one of my Father's Day titles, but that is about it.

[Yalın · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Babalık sonradan giyilen bir gömlek, çoğu erkeğin düğmelerini doğru ilikleyemediği. Ama annelik öyle mi ya?"
Samodey, “Sakın Oraya Gitme” - Yekta Kopan.

Baba nedir, 3 yaşındaki oğlum için, nedir baba? Bir dev midir dağların arkasına sığmayan, hapşırınca depremler yaratan? “Babam gibi olmak istiyorum”, bir oğul için kaç yaşında başlar, kaç yaşında biter? Biter mi? Hiç tükenmeyen bir miras mıdır, babamız gibi olmak, oğullarımıza bıraktığımız?

[Donna Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little boy talks about how big his dad is, his sneeze blows the ocean away, the ground trembles when he runs, and he can kick a football to the moon. But the boy feels completely safe when he's in his dad's arms. Because his dad loves him with his whole giant heart.

[Rani · Rating 3 out of 5]

#Admiration for #Daddy and wish to grow up to be like #Daddy. #YoungReaders #PictureBook #BookReview #ChildrensBooks #amreading

[Benjamin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two-year-old and four-year-old both like it. Also, it stokes my ego.

[The Campbell Family · Rating 4 out of 5]

Artsy illustrations, super simple story, the kids enjoyed it but thought he was an actual giant.

[Maeve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Storytime:
Dads

[Sudefteri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Babasını seven ve sürekli ondan bahseden bir çocuğun günlüğünü okumak gibiydi.

[Merve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ben de küçükken babamın elini tam tutmaya yetişemez, sadece serçe parmağını tutardım yürürken, böyle minik ve tatlı bir anı bu küçücük kitap da…

[Tanade Sirinumas · Rating 4 out of 5]

เล่มนี้ เด็ก ๆ คงฟิน

[529_Quincy Owens · Rating 1 out of 5]

My Daddy is a Giant written by Carl Norac was illustrated by Ingrid Godon. The story follows the daily activities of a young boy and his father. The illustrations are culturally generic, devoid of any cultural references which could be used to identify their ethnicity beyond European or American. The story is told in both Panjabi and English. The story itself simply addresses the love between a son and his father. I am sure this book would be well received by children in kindergarten and 1st grade. If the story was going to be read in class a responsible teach should make some accommodations for students who may not have their father in their lives.

[Stephanie Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very cute children's book that illustrated how children feel that their fathers are the best and biggest people around. The boy in the book compared his father's sneeze and laugh to a hurricane. The boy also says that birds nest in his father's hair because he is so close to the sky. The pictures truly illustrated what the text was saying. I enjoyed this book and can relate to the little boy because I felt the same way he does about his father when I was little because my dad is also very tall.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute story, especially because after I read it to our two-year-old son, my husband said it made him feel all fuzzy. :) Now my son is saying he wants to be a giant. I liked how much it relates how children (especially sons) look up to their fathers. Dads are very important people in their children's lives.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book, and love that it comes with so many different bilingual options (although nearly impossible to find them on amazon for a good price). I accidentally discovered that there are two alternate endings: I much prefer "My daddy is a giant and he loves me with all his giant heart" to "My daddy is a giant and when I grow up, I'm going to be a giant too."

[Carman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute book. It simply illustrates the awe many children feel when it comes to their father. The pictures were true to the writing so this book would be for emerging readers that are "reading the pictures." I would definitely add to my class library.

[Shaley Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a little boy and his dad which he looks up to. He says all the things his dad does and how he does it after. I really like this book because when you think about little kids they probably think all adults are giants because they are so small.

[Tiara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute story told from the son's perspective about how he feels about his daddy. Great illustrations that kids could see as inspiration for their own writing. Lesson idea - using it to connect to a Father's Day project - writing their own version.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice. Not whoa amazing. But a good Dad book that us kids who look up to our dads can relate to.

6/17/15 Opener for Daddy! theme. The symbolism of looking up to dad was lost on them, but they liked the idea of a Dad who was a giant.

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it! Simple story, great illustrations :D

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be a great Father's Day choice.

[Sally Staples · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about what a daddy is through the eyes of a child. Everything a daddy does seems extra big, but in the end the little boy wants to be just like his dad. Sweet story.

[Brindi Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great for "Dad's Day" preschool story time

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, short story about a boy whose whole world is giant, including his Daddy. But he feels safe in his Daddy's arms, and knows he will be a giant one day too...just like his Daddy.