“The Day the Crayons Quit” by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers
Philomel Books, New York, 2013, 32 pages, Grades K-3.
Sometimes it is so hard to be ourselves. Television advertising constantly bombards us with images of beautiful, rich people enjoying the good things of life. This can cause us to look around and see these talented, handsome people and suffer from jealousy. This occurs in all stages of life but is particularly evident at school.
For example, elementary school students are very aware of who is popular and most talented in class. This can lead to friction and unhappiness. Drew Daywalt has written a clever, funny book on this topic. In the book, we view characters suffering from jealousy, exhaustion and neglect. At the same time, we see other characters that are happy and satisfied. The name of this witty, informative tale is “The Day the Crayons Quit.”
It all begins when Duncan arrives at school and finds a stack of letters on his desk. Puzzled, he opens the first letter and gets a big surprise. The crayons have written letters to him, describing their feelings about the school year. In particular, some of the crayons are angry about how Duncan has used them during coloring exercises.
For example, the first letter comes from the Red Crayon. This crayon feels that Duncan has consistently overworked it during the school year. After all, Duncan colors the fire engine, strawberries and apples red. Red Crayon doesn’t even get a break at Christmas or St. Valentine’s Day since Duncan is always using Red for St. Nicholas or valentines. Red Crayon has had enough and demands a rest.
Next, Purple Crayon thanks Duncan for using it so well. The grapes and dragons give Purple Crayon a sense of beauty and accomplishment. But Purple Crayon has one major complaint about Duncan’s coloring. He doesn’t stay in the lines, which constantly frustrates Purple Crayon.
Next, comes the letter from Beige Crayon. This crayon is sad and very tired. It can’t believe that so many people neglect this color and think that brown is a prettier color. This constant comparison with the Brown Crayon has depressed and worn out Beige Crayon. It wants to be used in more colorful and interesting pictures.
The story continues with color after color demanding that Duncan changes the way he colors. Orange and Yellow refuse to talk to each other because both feel put down by the other crayon. Duncan tries to figure out how to make all these bad feelings and jealousies go away. All that he wants to do is color fun pictures. As he looks at the moping box of crayons he comes up with an idea. Maybe this will work. What is it?
What does Duncan do? Is he able to make all the crayons happy? Have you ever felt jealous over someone else’s accomplishments? What did you do? What finally happens in the book? To find out, go to the library and check out this entertaining picture book, “The Day the Crayons Quit” by Drew Daywalt.
This book was awarded the Golden Sower Medal in 2016 as the most popular K-3 book in Nebraska. It has won many awards in other states. I think part of the reason for this is that the book addresses the problems of self-acceptance and rivalry in a compassionate and humorous manner. The illustrations are clever, vibrant and have a childlike quality. They look as if some children were let loose with a box of crayons.
This is a fun book to share with younger members of your family or in a classroom setting. I hope you get a chance to read this delightful book. Enjoy!
