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The Day the Crayons Quit | July 10, 2013

by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers (Philomel/Penguin, June 2013)

Crayons are the obvious tool of choice for the child artist. They’re easy to grasp, require little cleanup, and—while not recommended— are safe to eat. In The Day the Crayons Quit, these drawing implements leverage their artistic indispensability by leaving their owner, Duncan, a series of letters demanding to be taken seriously — with hilarious results

This book is a love letter to the common crayon.  Each color’s letter of complaint to Duncan and accompanying drawing make its plights instantly relatable. Whether it’s poor, neglected Beige; stubby, overworked Blue; or an embarrassed, unwrapped Peach, each crayon’s letter delightfully caricatures its traditional drawing role.  Duncan’s solution to each crayon’s criticism not only culminates in the best picture in the book, but it may even help young readers re-evaluate how they see and, in turn, represent the world around them.

The story is paired beautifully with Oliver Jeffers’ incredibly detailed art. The crayons’ letters are photographs of actual pieces of paper, written in each color’s unique handwriting.  The crayons have scribble crayon expressions and crayon-line limbs, complete with crayon-scrawled shadows on the page. Each image carries a staggering amount of expressivity and subtle sight gags for those readers who like to get lost in the page, yet through it all Jeffers is able to maintain a minimalist tone—a carefully constructed sloppiness and coloring-outside-the-lines typical of all great works of crayon art. Pick up this love letter to the common crayon—you’ll soon find yourself longing for the fresh page of the coloring book and the smell of wax at your fingertips.

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