The+Day+the+Crayons+Quit



Book Review By: Jacinya B. The Day the Crayons Quit New York Times Best Sellers Written by: Drew Daywalt Illustrated by: Oliver Jeffers

Publisher: Philomel 1st Edition

Published Date: June 27th, 2013

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0399255370

ISBN-13: 978-0399255373

Age Range: 3-7 years old

Grade Level: Pre-k to 2nd grade

Hardcover: 40 pages

Pricing: Hardcover: $8.99, Paperback: $8.05, Kindle: $8.54, Nook: $10.99

media type="youtube" key="lQZhCogxVDs" width="420" height="315" align="center"

__**Summary**__ Crayons are on strike! Duncan goes for a box of crayons, twelve in quantity, and finds a stack of letters waiting for him. The letters are from the crayons themselves expressing helplessness or sadness along with a bit of anger of their coloring and drawing career. These crayons replicate similar emotions to humans and it is Duncan’s job to meet the needs and bring contentment for all of the crayons before they quit for good.

__**Review**__ //The Day the Crayons Quit// by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers is skillfully crafted with a dominating theme of empathy or the understanding and the sharing of emotions with other individuals. Throughout the story, we hear the voices of twelve crayons and their dismays of their coloring and drawing careers, hoping for some changes or they vow that they will quit. This story is opened to many interpretations and various lessons about real life emotions or more academic lessons of writing letters, where the students can possibly respond to a crayon, enhancing their writing skills along with reading. With the interesting and easy-to-read text and the match of illustrations of something relatable for many young children, this story brings an awareness of feelings, emotional regulation, and the workmanship of working with others, addressing the children’s increasing development with their interpersonal skills.

__**Literary Analysis**__ //The Day the Crayons Quit// has a central theme of empathy. The writing style of Drew Daywalt is very influential that it replicates human emotions through something easy to relate to as crayons for young children. Drew Daywalt writes about twelve crayons and their coloring and drawing career while addressing Duncan. By this, the children can become aware of how character’s actions such as Duncan, effects the story. An example is when Beige Crayon feels left out and only gets to color the rare pictures of “turkey dinners and wheat.” By Duncan not coloring with Beige for more than undesirable foods, the effect of his actions, Beige feels left out. The crayons have clear voices that show, in more of a real life setting, not everyone is happy and will always be content with actions an individual may partake in. This book shows the importance of emotional understanding and developing proper and effective interpersonal skills which is crucial when working with family, friends, co-workers, peers, or complete strangers.

Drew Daywalt, with the beautiful illustrations of Oliver Jeffers, captures the tone of emotions in a way that makes the crayons come to life as if they become humans in our minds as we read. This makes them more relatable and where young readers can understand easier the message they are trying to convey. With the combinations of Oliver Jeffers, the two of them channel the worries and the sadness of the crayons where children will learn to regulate their own emotions along with becoming aware of the emotions and feelings of others. With this comes a learning of problem solving and resolutions skills. Children can make connections with individuals they know or of objects they own and provide their own voices for them such as erasers, shoes, tissue and so forth. While reading this book, children can also develop academic skills such as sequencing, character’s actions and their effect on the plot along with prediction and as said before, problem solving or resolution skills. Due to the quality and the effectiveness in the message of this book, all children can continually understand the meaning of empathy and how they can work on being sure they have empathy in their own lives. This again promotes strong interpersonal skills amongst many other skills Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers provides for us as readers of //The Day the Crayons Quit.//

**__Author Biography__** Drew Daywalt grew up in South Carolina where he currently resides with his wife, two children, and dog. His book, The Day the Crayons Quit has made it to number one on New York Times Best Sellers. He is also known to direct films.

**__Illustrator Biography__** Oliver Jeffers, born in 1977, is an illustrator, artist, creator of books, and writer, from Belfast, Northern Ireland. Oliver is known for his contribution to Harper Collins UK, and Penguin US children’s books with his first book titled, //How to Catch a Star// in 2004. His career took off from there with books he writes and illustrates amongst books that only showcase his beautiful illustrations such as //Stay Where You Are and Then Leave// by John Boyne (2014). As for his artistry, Oliver Jeffers’s paintings are considered to be figurative on canvas or in 3-D designs. Amongst his many awards, it is stated that in 2007, Jeffers was the official World Book Day illustrator.

__** Related Links **__

@http://www.amazon.com/The-Crayons-Quit-Drew-Daywalt/dp/0399255370

@http://www.oliverjeffers.com/

@http://www.oliverjeffers.com/picture-books/stuck

@http://www.penguin.com/static/images/yr/pdf/CrayonsGuide.pdf

@https://www.pinterest.com/melissashields/the-day-the-crayons-quit/

@http://classroombookshelf.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-day-crayons-quit.html