Giant Brain – Jumbo Brain Squishy Toy

The brain is about 4.5 inches long, 4.5 inches wide and 3.7 inches tall, which is 11.4 by 11.4 by 9.4 centimeters. That is the jumbo end of our squishy range: it fills a child's whole hand rather than a palm, and most kids end up holding it in two, so a squeeze uses fingers and grip together. It still sits on a shelf without taking over, and it fits in a backpack, though it is more of a stay-at-home piece than a pocket toy. Between squeezes it looks like a small, pink, realistic brain, folds and all, which is the whole joke. Measurements are approximate.

Soft yet sturdy. The Giant Brain gives under a big squeeze and comes back to shape when it is let go, and it is made to take a squeezing, so a child can grip it hard and often without it losing its shape. Because it is hand-filling, the squeeze feels bigger than a small squishy: there is enough of it to really get the fingers into, and squashing it flat between two hands and watching it come back is the part kids repeat. There is no mechanism inside, just the squishy material itself. If your child wants something to stretch and fling, our silicone Calma Llama is built for that; this one is built to be squashed.

The Giant Brain is recommended for kids ages 6 and up. There is nothing to figure out and no right way to play: a child squeezes it, lets it go and squeezes it again, so it suits a 6-year-old as well as an older child who likes the wonderfully weird. The joke lands on sight, which is why it makes such a good birthday present, and a child who is curious about the human body will love having a brain on the shelf. It is a squishy first rather than a toy that does anything on its own. If there is a younger sibling in the house, keep this one for the older child.

You get one Giant Brain in its box, and that is everything you need. There is nothing to assemble, nothing to charge and no batteries to buy, because it is a single piece of soft, sturdy squishy material with no parts. It is ready to squeeze the moment it comes out of the box, and the folds and wrinkles of the brain are sculpted in, so there are no small loose parts to keep track of. Because it arrives already boxed, it can go straight into a gift bag or a party bag as it is, and nothing in it can leak or break in transit.

Most kids think it is the best thing about it. It is a realistic brain shape, with the folds and wrinkles sculpted in, but it is bright pink and smooth, with no face, no blood and nothing gory about it, so it reads as funny rather than frightening. Squashing it flat and watching it come back takes any remaining ick out of it fast. For a child who likes the wonderfully weird, or who is curious about the human body, it is a conversation starter they will show everyone. If your child would rather have a cute face to squeeze, the mushroom or the jellyfish in our range are the softer sell.