Have you ever seen a fish carrying an umbrella? How about a fish wearing a headscarf?

Poor Doreen wasn’t even supposed to be in my book. She just arrived without me inviting her. And took over. (I got the idea for the book when I was out running.)

The book I wanted to write was going to be all poetic and touchingly-beautiful about life on a riverbank. It was not supposed to have a big noisy fish in it. But that’s how stories work. You tend not to be in charge of them. You tend to have to follow them.

If you have seen the illustrations of Poor Doreen by the talented Alexandra Boiger, then you’ll know all about Doreen’s outfit. But what color would you have made her headscarf? And how about her umbrella? All different color stripes? Spots? Patchwork?

Alexandra has graciously provided these coloring pages. You can print them off and color them in with whatever patterns or colors you like. You can give Doreen a different outfit for each day of the week, if you want!

When you’re finished, I would LOVE to see your finished art. You can post them to my Facebook page or tag me on Instagram to share Doreen’s fashionable outfits.

(Be sure to visit Alexandra’s Instagram to see more of her works in progress.)