The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister Author Review: Pros and Cons

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Category: Entertainment — Books & Children’s Literature

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The Rainbow Fish at a Glance

Feature	Details
Title	The Rainbow Fish
Author & Illustrator	Marcus Pfister
Original publication	1992
Publisher	NorthSouth Books
Genre	Children’s picture book
Recommended age	Approximately 4–8 for the standard hardcover edition
Pages	32 pages in the standard hardcover edition
Main themes	Sharing, friendship, generosity, pride, beauty
Standout feature	Shimmering/iridescent foil scales
Series	Rainbow Fish
Overall verdict	Visually memorable and useful for discussing sharing, but its central moral deserves thoughtful discussion

The Rainbow Fish on Amazon

The publisher identifies the standard hardcover as a 32-page book for ages 4–8 and describes it as the first book in the Rainbow Fish series. (Simon & Schuster)

If you’re shopping for a children’s book that combines a visually distinctive presentation with a straightforward lesson about friendship and generosity, The Rainbow Fish is an interesting choice. The book was originally published in 1992 and became Marcus Pfister’s breakthrough picture book. The publisher says the series has been translated into roughly 65 languages and that Pfister has published more than 60 books. (Simon & Schuster)

But there is an important reason to look beyond the glittery cover before buying it: the book’s message about sharing has generated legitimate debate. Some parents and educators see it as a useful introduction to generosity, while critics question whether the story makes friendship seem conditional on giving away possessions.

That tension is one of the most interesting things about reviewing The Rainbow Fish today.

What Is The Rainbow Fish About?

The Rainbow Fish is about a beautiful fish who learns that friendship and happiness matter more than being admired for his appearance.

The central character is a fish whose shimmering, multicolored scales make him the most visually spectacular fish in the ocean. Other fish admire him and eventually ask him to share one of his special scales.

At first, Rainbow Fish refuses.

His refusal has consequences. The other fish distance themselves from him, leaving him increasingly isolated. Eventually, he seeks advice from a wise octopus, who tells him that he should share his special scales.

Rainbow Fish eventually follows the advice. As he gives away his shiny scales, he becomes less visually distinctive but gains something he had been missing: friendship.

The official publisher describes the story as one in which the vain and proud Rainbow Fish becomes lonely, realizes that beauty alone cannot win friends, and begins distributing his glitter scales to the other fish. (Simon & Schuster)

What makes the story memorable?

The illustrations are arguably as important as the plot.

Pfister’s use of iridescent and holographic-looking foil gives the fish’s scales a reflective quality that immediately separates the book from ordinary picture books. The publisher specifically highlights the eye-catching foil stamping and glittering presentation. (Simon & Schuster)

That visual effect can make the book particularly attractive to younger children. The physical book essentially turns Rainbow Fish’s unusual appearance into part of the reading experience.

Is The Rainbow Fish a Good Book for Children?

Yes, but it works best when adults use the story as a conversation starter rather than treating its moral as a simple rule.

There is a lot to like about The Rainbow Fish. It is short, visually engaging, easy to understand, and built around subjects that naturally matter to young children: friendship, inclusion, generosity, jealousy, pride and belonging.

The official publisher describes its message as learning to make friends through sharing prized possessions. (Simon & Schuster)

Educational resources similarly identify friendship, generosity and sharing as central themes. Reading Is Fundamental’s read-aloud guide, for example, recommends thinking about what makes Rainbow Fish lonely and how his choices affect his friendships. (Rif)

However, parents may want to ask a second question: Does being a good friend mean giving away things that belong to you?

That is where the book becomes more complicated.

Who is likely to enjoy it?

Children who respond strongly to colorful illustrations, animals, ocean stories and simple social-emotional lessons are likely to find the book appealing.

It can also work well for parents, preschool teachers and early-elementary educators looking for a starting point for conversations about sharing.

The Philosophy Foundation lists the story for philosophical discussions with children approximately ages 3–5 and 5–7 and uses it to explore questions about sharing, caring for oneself and caring for others. (Philosophy Foundation)

What Is the Main Lesson of The Rainbow Fish?

The main lesson is that generosity, friendship and connection can be more valuable than status or physical beauty.

Rainbow Fish begins the story focused on being admired. His extraordinary scales make him beautiful, but his pride prevents him from developing meaningful relationships.

After losing the companionship of the other fish, he learns that being admired is not enough.

The official publisher summarizes the transformation as Rainbow Fish realizing that he cannot win friends through beauty and beginning to share his glitter scales. (Simon & Schuster)

This makes the book useful for discussing an important childhood experience: having something other people want does not automatically make you happier.

Why does sharing matter so much in the story?

Sharing is the mechanism through which Rainbow Fish changes.

Before he shares, he has something valuable but is lonely. After he shares, he possesses less of his original treasure but has relationships with the other fish.

That simple contrast makes the story easy for young children to understand.

Educational reviewers have identified the same themes. BYU’s Children’s Book and Media Review describes the story as addressing sharing, humility and friendship, while the Prindle Institute for Ethics uses it to prompt discussions about sharing, beauty and happiness. (BYU ScholarsArchive)

What Are the Pros of The Rainbow Fish?

The biggest strengths are its memorable artwork, simple storytelling, discussion-worthy themes and strong appeal to young readers.

Pro #1: The illustrations are distinctive

This is probably the book’s most obvious strength.

The iridescent scales are designed to catch the light, giving the physical book a special tactile and visual quality. The publisher calls attention to its foil stamping and glittering presentation. (Simon & Schuster)

For a young child, that can make the difference between an ordinary book and one they repeatedly request.

Pro #2: The story introduces friendship and generosity

The book gives parents an accessible way to discuss why kindness and generosity matter.

Instead of presenting an abstract lesson, Pfister places the lesson inside a recognizable social situation: one character has something desirable, other characters want it, and the resulting conflict affects their friendship.

Pro #3: It encourages discussion

Perhaps the strongest modern use of The Rainbow Fish is not simply reading it and saying, “Sharing is good.”

Instead, adults can ask:

Was Rainbow Fish wrong to keep his scales?
Should he have shared one?
Should he have shared all of them?
Is it okay to say no?
Do the other fish have the right to ask for his possessions?
Can you be generous without giving away everything you own?
What makes someone a good friend?

These questions are particularly valuable because they reveal that the story has more complexity than its simple surface lesson suggests. The Philosophy Foundation explicitly uses the book for questions about whether Rainbow Fish should give away his scales and whether it is acceptable not to share them. (Philosophy Foundation)

Pro #4: It can support social-emotional learning

The story provides opportunities to talk about loneliness, pride, rejection, generosity and friendship.

A child can identify how Rainbow Fish feels at different points in the story and consider how his actions contribute to those feelings.

Pro #5: The book has strong staying power

The Rainbow Fish is not simply a recent children’s release. The original book dates to 1992 and became the first title in a larger Rainbow Fish series. The publisher describes it as a New York Times bestselling series and notes multiple awards associated with the book. (Simon & Schuster)

That longevity suggests that the book has continued to resonate with families and educators.

What Are the Cons of The Rainbow Fish?

The biggest weakness is that the sharing lesson can be interpreted as saying children must surrender possessions to earn friendship.

This is the issue parents should consider most carefully.

The story’s solution is not simply that Rainbow Fish becomes kinder. He gives away his special scales.

That creates an uncomfortable question: Are the other fish becoming his friends because they appreciate him, or because they receive something from him?

One long-standing criticism of the book is precisely this concern. Publishers Weekly’s review called it a cautionary tale about selfishness and vanity but criticized the predictability of the plot and some aspects of the translation. (PublishersWeekly.com)

Other reviewers have been more direct about the moral.

A children’s-book review from Once Upon a Childhood criticized the idea that Rainbow Fish effectively has to give away his scales to obtain friendship, while praising the distinctive artwork. (Once Upon A Childhood…)

Cons to consider before buying

1. The moral can be oversimplified.
A child may interpret the story as “I need to give people my things so they will like me.”

2. The other fish’s behavior deserves discussion.
The story presents social rejection after Rainbow Fish refuses to share, which raises questions about whether their response is fair.

3. Rainbow Fish gives away nearly all of his special scales.
That can conflict with the equally important lesson that children are allowed to have personal boundaries and possessions.

4. The plot is relatively predictable.
Adults looking for a highly sophisticated narrative may find the story straightforward.

5. The message may require adult explanation.
The story can be more valuable when parents explain that generosity does not mean giving away everything someone asks for.

Is The Rainbow Fish About Sharing or Giving Up Too Much?

It is primarily about sharing, but modern readers can reasonably question whether the book draws a clear enough line between generosity and personal boundaries.

This is arguably the most important question to ask before purchasing the book.

The intended message is easy to identify: Rainbow Fish is unhappy when he is proud and unwilling to share, and becomes happier when he gives to others. The publisher explicitly presents sharing as the central message. (Simon & Schuster)

But children also need to learn that sharing is voluntary.

A healthy conversation might therefore be:

“It’s good to share when you want to, but you don’t have to give away something just because somebody asks.”

That interpretation allows parents to preserve the book’s positive lesson without teaching that friendship must be purchased with possessions.

Why is this distinction important?

Children are learning boundaries at the same time they are learning generosity.

A child can be generous with toys, food, attention and time while still retaining ownership of favorite possessions.

That makes The Rainbow Fish particularly useful as a discussion book because adults can move beyond the story’s obvious moral and ask children to think critically about what happened.

The Prindle Institute specifically frames the book as an opportunity to discuss the nature of sharing, beauty and happiness. (The Prindle Institute for Ethics)

What Age Is The Rainbow Fish Best For?

The standard edition is particularly well suited to preschool and early-elementary readers, with the publisher listing ages 4–8.

The official NorthSouth/SIMON & SCHUSTER listing gives the standard hardcover edition an age range of 4–8 and identifies it as 32 pages. (Simon & Schuster)

There are also board-book and bath-book editions aimed at younger children. The publisher describes the board-book edition as intended for the youngest readers and emphasizes its glittering presentation. (Simon & Schuster)

That means parents can choose an edition based on a child’s age and reading ability.

How should parents use it with different ages?

Ages 2–3: Focus primarily on the colorful fish, ocean setting, vocabulary and basic concept of sharing.

Ages 4–5: Discuss friendship, feelings, kindness and why Rainbow Fish becomes lonely.

Ages 6–8: Ask more complicated questions about fairness, ownership, peer pressure, generosity and whether Rainbow Fish should have given away his scales.

Older children: The story can become an ethics discussion about whether generosity is still generosity when it is required to gain acceptance.

Who Wrote The Rainbow Fish?

Marcus Pfister wrote and illustrated The Rainbow Fish and originally published it in 1992.

Pfister was born in Bern, Switzerland, studied at art school in Bern and trained as a graphic artist. The publisher says his breakthrough came with The Rainbow Fish in 1992. He subsequently published more than 60 books, which have been translated into approximately 65 languages. (Simon & Schuster)

The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister on Amazon

What makes Pfister’s illustration style distinctive in this book?

The answer is the combination of conventional illustration and reflective foil.

Rainbow Fish’s most important physical characteristic—his sparkling scales—isn’t merely described in the text. It is incorporated into the physical production of the book.

That design choice reinforces the story’s central conflict: the thing that makes Rainbow Fish beautiful is also the thing he eventually gives away.

Why Is The Rainbow Fish Still Popular?

Its combination of a simple social lesson and highly recognizable artwork gives it lasting appeal.

Many children’s books teach sharing. Far fewer have a visual gimmick as immediately recognizable as Rainbow Fish’s reflective scales.

The publisher identifies the book as the first title in the bestselling Rainbow Fish series and lists several awards and distinctions, including a Christopher Award and the Bologna Book Fair Critici in Erba Prize. (Simon & Schuster)

The book also remains useful because its central question—what makes a good friend?—is easy for children to understand.

Its message can be discussed at multiple levels:

Sharing with others
Dealing with pride
Handling loneliness
Understanding consequences
Finding happiness beyond appearance
Balancing generosity and boundaries

That combination helps explain why the book remains recognizable decades after its original publication.

How Does The Rainbow Fish Compare With Other Children’s Books?

The Rainbow Fish stands out most for its visual presentation and its unusually debatable lesson about friendship and sharing.

Compared with many straightforward children’s books about kindness, The Rainbow Fish gives parents something more complicated to discuss.

A book that simply says “be kind” leaves little room for disagreement.

The Rainbow Fish raises a harder question: How much should you give up for friendship?

That is both a strength and a weakness.

If you want a book that delivers a simple, uncomplicated lesson about kindness, there may be more straightforward choices.

If you want a visually impressive book that can generate a conversation about generosity, social acceptance and boundaries, The Rainbow Fish has considerably more potential.

Where does it work especially well?

It can work particularly well in:

Preschool classrooms
Kindergarten classrooms
Early elementary classrooms
Bedtime reading
Social-emotional learning discussions
Lessons about friendship
Discussions about sharing
Philosophy or ethics activities for children

Educational resources continue to use the story for discussions involving friendship, generosity, sharing, fairness and self-worth. (BYU ScholarsArchive)

What Are the Biggest Reasons to Buy The Rainbow Fish?

Buy it if you want a visually memorable children’s book that can spark conversations about friendship and generosity.

The strongest reasons to consider purchasing it are:

The illustrations. The shimmering scales make the physical book unusually eye-catching.

The recognizable story. The plot is easy for young children to follow.

The discussion potential. Adults can use the story to explore both generosity and boundaries.

The age range. The standard edition is appropriate for many preschool and early-elementary readers.

The series potential. Children who enjoy Rainbow Fish can explore additional books featuring the character.

Shop The Rainbow Fish editions on Amazon

What Are the Biggest Reasons Not to Buy It?

Skip it if you are uncomfortable with a children’s story that connects gaining friendship with giving away personal possessions.

The central concern is not the book’s quality of production. It is the interpretation of its moral.

Some parents may feel that the story teaches an overly simplistic version of sharing. Others may see that very simplicity as an opportunity to teach a more nuanced lesson.

The best approach is to decide whether you are comfortable having that conversation with your child.

If you are, the controversy can actually become a benefit.

Is The Rainbow Fish Worth Buying?

Yes, The Rainbow Fish is worth considering for families who want an attractive, classic picture book with a strong discussion theme—but it should not be treated as a literal rule that children must give away possessions to earn friendship.

Overall rating: 4 out of 5

Category	Rating
Illustrations	★★★★★
Child appeal	★★★★★
Story simplicity	★★★★☆
Discussion value	★★★★★
Moral clarity	★★★☆☆
Read-aloud potential	★★★★☆
Overall value	★★★★☆

The strongest part of The Rainbow Fish is its presentation. The shimmering scales immediately give the book an identity that children can recognize. The publisher specifically highlights the foil and glittering artwork as part of its appeal. (Simon & Schuster)

The second major strength is its ability to create conversation.

Rather than simply telling children that sharing is good, the story creates a situation where readers can ask whether Rainbow Fish made the right decision, whether the other fish behaved fairly and whether generosity should have limits.

That is where the book becomes more valuable for today’s families.

Final answer: Who should buy The Rainbow Fish?

Parents of preschool and early-elementary children, grandparents, teachers and caregivers looking for a visually striking book about friendship and sharing are the most likely to appreciate it.

Final answer: What is the biggest pro?

The combination of memorable holographic/iridescent artwork and an easy-to-understand friendship lesson.

Final answer: What is the biggest con?

The story can be interpreted as suggesting that Rainbow Fish needs to give away his prized possessions to gain friendship, which may require explanation for children learning about personal boundaries.

Final answer: When is it most useful?

It is especially useful when an adult reads it with a child and follows the story with questions about sharing, fairness, generosity and self-respect.

Final answer: Why is it still relevant?

Because children continue to face the same basic questions about friendship, belonging, generosity and being accepted by their peers.

Final answer: How should parents explain the lesson?

A balanced interpretation is: sharing can help us build relationships, but genuine friendship should not require us to surrender everything we value.

That distinction turns The Rainbow Fish from a simple story about giving away shiny scales into a much richer conversation about what it means to be generous while still respecting yourself.

Check the current price and editions of The Rainbow Fish on Amazon

Prices, availability, editions and retailer listings can change. The review above is based on the standard story and publisher information available at the time of writing.

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