Favorite Picture Book of the Year

Well the time has come, the day is here, the hour is at hand ..... to tell you my Favorite Picture Book of the Year!  I debated waiting until the actual end of the year but things are so hectic that I wanted to give you plenty of time to fawn over this book.

So what makes a book my "favorite."  Well in my world it has to be clever, (check) funny at a child and adult level (check) and a wonderful read aloud (check!)  This top honor went to Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons last year.  While Pete the Cat had me singing in front of a class of Kindergartners, the winner this year allows me to use my best acting chops to deliver a humorous and all to true account of how kids use their crayons.

This does not signal the end of my profiling great picture books this year.  I still have some wonderful contenders that were a close second that I have yet to share with you.  But I didn't want to keep this one under my belt any longer.  I want you to get out there and enjoy it with your kids.

Don't forget to like One Great Book on Facebook or twitter.  Buttons are on the bar to the left.  You don't want to miss the funny picture books coming up which include a support group for carnivores .... oh come on, how can you not be intrigued?

Title:       The Day the Crayons Quit

Author:    Drew Daywalt

Target:     Kindergarten - Grade 3

What this book is about:
Duncan is in the mood to color.  He pulls out his crayon box, and low and behold, his faithful crayons are gone, and several letters have been left in their place.  They outline the crayon’s grievances, and they want to be taken seriously.  Beige is tired of playing second fiddle to brown, can you blame him?  Peach crayon is very unhappy about having his wrapper peeled off, I mean now he has to go around naked!  Yellow and Orange just want Duncan to make up his mind and pick a definitive color for the sun, the waffling is causing tension in the box.  And the list goes on!

Why I love this book:
I read a lot of picture books every year, and this one is by far my favorite of the year.  It is the one book I can honestly say I wish I had written!  The clever humor is all too true and both kids and adults will easily be able to appreciate the plight of the crayons.  I think kids will actually think twice when they pick up their crayon box from now on, and maybe even experiment with some new combinations.

The illustrations by Oliver Jeffers are lovely and the crayons are surprisingly expressive.  If I have one complaint (and I really shouldn't because this book is so well done) it is that each letter is written in crayon.  While whimsical, I sometimes  found the text difficult to read, and I didn’t want to miss any of the funny musings. 

Who this book is for:
I can’t think of a child who wouldn’t be giggling by the end of this book.  Poor naked Peach crayon always gets the biggest laugh.

Final thoughts:
Crayons have feelings too and I will try and use beige a little more often, now that I know he cares.

To purchase this book, click on the following link to connect to Amazon: The Day the Crayons Quit  A portion of each purchase goes to support this blog at no cost to you.