By Michael Hall
This children’s picture book has really friendly pictures and a cute idea. It doesn’t quite make it to “great” for me. The idea of it is great though. There is a crayon that has merged with others to become Frankencrayon. The other crayons are the townspeople. The biggest problem for me is that most young children are not that familiar with Frankenstein and the story where the townspeople try to attack. So a lot of the parents will think this is funny, but I’m not positive young readers will get the references. It was funny for me, but not my students.
One funny part of the book that all readers will enjoy is that the pencil tries to cancel the book. It is cute, and the fact that they forget to tell Frankencrayon is also funny. He shows up on page 22 wondering where the frightened townspeople are. He encounters the scribble that messed up the book. That is why the book was supposed to be cancelled. It turns out the scribble wasn’t too bad. (A message I wonder about.) One lesson the crayons learn is that “even a messy scribble can be a lovely thing”. As an art enthusiast I agree that scribbles can be helpful, but as a book lover I don’t think I like them mixing.
Many readers will enjoy the Frankenstein-monster aspect of this story.
Review by Cheryl Baker, Mill Creek Elementary Media Center
Rating: ★★★✩✩ (3 stars)
Interest Level: Grades K-3
Frankencrayon
By Michael Hall
Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers
40 pages
Release Date: January 26, 2016
A review copy was provided by the publisher.
Categories: Elem. – Picture Book
Tags: Crayons, art, scribbles, books.
