Summer reads – The Day the Crayons Quit
If you’re looking for a brilliantly inventive and very funny read for the under-fives then The Day the Crayons Quit is my favourite picture book of the year (so far, that is).
I’m a huge fan of the talented Oliver Jeffers, who has illustrated the book, but what makes it come alive is the hilarious and highly original story.
Written by US film writer and director Drew Daywalt, it’s the tale of Duncan, a little boy who loves drawing.
But there’s trouble in store when Duncan opens his box of crayons. Inside is a sheaf of letters with his name on. They’re from the crayons themselves and it turns out that every single colour is up in arms about something. Beige is sick of being called “light brown or “dark tan” and reckons Brown gets all the best colouring work (like bears, ponies and puppies). White is fed up of only colouring in snow or filling empty space, Orange and Yellow aren’t speaking to each other and Blue is “short and stubby” from over-use. You get the gist.
Daywalt, whose favourite crayon is black, and Jeffers, who likes stripes, deserve to win loads of awards for this wonderful book. Children will roar with laughter – and I reckon their parents will too. Best of all it will inspire young readers to get their own crayons out and draw.
The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers (HarperCollins Children’s Books, £12.99)