There is something about Ivan that makes him different from the other six year olds in his class, and they tease him for it. Ivan is able to explain his uniqueness to us: inside, he believes he is a crocodile. When we accept the invitation to enter Ivan's crocodile world, we can expect to be thoroughly engaged, but we can also expect to be emotionally challenged. What we cannot expect is a straightforward moral to this story, whereby difficult situations are simply resolved. In telling us his story, Ivan leaves us with much to think and talk about.