Journey (urspr publ 2013; utgåvan 2013)

A lovely book in the spirit of "Harold and the Purple Crayon." ( )

I was hesitant to read a book that only had illustrations. There were no words, BUT so much was said. With everyone in her life being distracted by electronics( the computer, phone, video games), the young girl finds herself alone in her room. When she picks up a crayon to draw and suddenly her boring lifeless room is transformed into a complete journey. Her creativity gets flowing; she no longer is stuck in the room, but she travels to the places she imagines. This art expression transforms her mindset completely. Whereas before she sat on her bed looking lonely and forgotten, now she immerses herself in a beautiful wooded forest, floating down the river in a boat, entering a new city with a castle, and even floating in the sky. Her world was only as contained as her creativity! If you like "Book" by George Ella Lyons you will like this captivating and imaginative journey.

The scenes showing her family absorbed in their electronics could have been left out of the story. It would have still been a story about creating your own adventure and showing the power of expression through art. BUT these strong beginning scenes immediately grab the readers' attention with the "oh yeah, I do that" feeling. We need wake up calls like this to remind us to be intentional with our time and with our loved ones. ( )

I would rate Journey 4 out of 5 stars. This wordless picture book would be a good tool to use with both problem and setting. It was creative and fascinating. The story’s downfall is that it revolves around a girl and her magic crayon. The journey began when she drew in her walk with the magic crayon. This might encourage kids to draw on their walls which is not a message I want to send.

This book is part of a trilogy so the lessons can be and extensive. BY reading all three the students can make predictions and get creative with what they think will happen next. The book is very illustration focused and there is a lot of depth and meaning behind the pictures. This can be used for the students to read into the setting and feel emotion towards the book rather than just read it. The journey of the young girl is enticing and makes the reader want to continue reading.

I really enjoyed this book because it encourages children to use their imagination and unlock their creative side. The girl in the book draws things with a magic marker to help take her throughout her fantasy journey. She creates a boat, a balloon, and a flying carpet throughout the book using her imagination to help her throughout her journey. I would recommend this book to children ages k-3. ( )