Are you weary of winter? Surprise
yourself and sit down with your favorite small person to try any of these
unusual storybooks about color.
Whether colors make you feel
strongly about something, or perhaps someone you know is synesthetic; can
actually hear or taste colors as well as see them, like The Girl Who Heard Colors, from the list below. Try out several of
these stories. See if they suit your taste.
Decide which colors you prefer.
Enjoy the sight, smell, taste, touch or sound of these delightful tales. Share
them with those you love. Warm up your winter with wonderful words.
My Blue is Happy by Jessica Young, illustrated by Catia Chien
Not
everyone shares the same point of view, debut picture book author Young
observes in the flap copy. This lively book celebrates variety in how colors
are experienced.
Sometimes using dialog to express
feelings linked to color, the book reads like a peppy, non-rhyming poem. The
eager girl in the story doesn’t argue out loud with family, neighbors, and
friends who experience color in, perhaps, an expected fashion. Instead, she
shares her “but” in active, non-argumentative, yet reflective language:
“The boy next door
says red is angry
Like a dragon’s
burning breath.
But my red is as
brave as a fire truck
And my superhero
cape.“
The surprising differences in
feelings often associated with specific colors are accented by vigorous acrylic
paintings. The lively union of words with pictures makes this charming story
appealing to young listeners. Yet, older readers will also feel engaged.
Candlewick Press,
$15.99 Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 3
The Day the Crayons
Quit by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers
This
imaginative story is a series of
letters written to a boy, Duncan, by the crayons from his box. The individual
crayons are feeling exhausted; red is overworked by the holidays. Purple, who
is tidy, wants Duncan to color inside the lines. Beige is tired of being
limited to coloring wheat.
Yellow and orange, which both think
they are the color of the sun, are no longer speaking to each other. Only green
is happy with his jobs – “crocodiles, trees, dinosaurs, and frogs.”
Other
colors have also written to Duncan: Gray, white, black, blue (the favorite),
pink (hardly ever used) and peach. Each complaint is clearly expressed and
cleverly written. Each note uses the appropriate crayon color, and features the
highlighted problem.
Playful
crayon illustrations are paired with the notes. Each is carefully photographed,
and placed on double-page spreads. The ending features the boy’s creativity in
using all the colors in one bright picture he gives to his teacher.
Philomel, $17.99
Interest Level: Pre-Kindergarten – Grade 2
One by Kathryn
Otoshi
Vibrant
splashes of watercolor blobs on white paper spotlight a story about colors,
that becomes a counting book, which turns into a bullying tale. A quiet color, Blue is picked on by
Red. “Red is hot. Blue is not.” Other colors comfort Blue, but not when Red is
there. In fact, Red gets bigger, and scarier, and meaner every time no one
speaks up to stop him.
One
comes. He’s brave. He’s funny.
He’s willing to stand up to Red and say, “No.” The other colors decide
to change into number, like One. Yellow becomes two, Green is three, and so on.
Blue wants to “count” too. Red feels left out.
When
Blue changes to Six, Red tries to tease him again. Instead, Blue says, “Red can
be really HOT, but Blue can be super COOL.” The others take a stand too, making
Red feel very small. However, they offer Red the chance to join in the counting
game.
That
one person can make a difference, is deftly strengthened by the ending:
“Sometimes it just takes One.” A seemingly simple story, with meaningful language,
artfully revealed.
Ko Kids Books, $17.95
Interest Level: Pre-Kindergarten – Grade 1
More fantastic
favorites to read together:
Little Green Peas: A
Big Book of Colors by Keith Baker
Beach Lane, $17.99
Interest Level:
Pre-Kindergarten – Grade 3
The Girl Who Heard
Colors by Marie Harris,
Illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton
Penguin, $16.99
Interest Level:
Pre-Kindergarten - Kindergarten
Black Cat White Cat
by Silvia Borando
Candlewick Press,
$14.00
Interest Level:
Pre-Kindergarten – Kindergarten
Ike’s Incredible Ink
by Brianne Farley
Candlewick Press,
$16.99
Interest Level: Junior
Kindergarten – Grade 3
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