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The creators of THE RUNAWAY DINNER and PREVIOUSLY team up to imagine the comical world that comes to life when a lonely pencil starts to draw.
"One day that little pencil made a move, shivered slightly, quivered somewhat . . . and began to draw."
Welcome back Banjo, the boy from THE RUNAWAY DINNER! Once a pencil draws him, there's no telling what will come next — a dog, a cat, a chase (of course), and a paintbrush to color in an ever-expanding group of family and friends. But it's not long before the complaints begin — "This hat looks silly!" "My ears are too big!" — until the poor pencil has no choice but to draw . . . an eraser. Oh no! In the hands of Allan Ahlberg and Bruce Ingman, can anything but havoc and hilarity ensue?
Both clever and suspenseful, this surefire delight tells the story of a pencil who must deal with the consequences of his inventions. The pencil begins by drawing a boy (Banjo from Ahlberg and Ingman's The Runaway Dinner), a dog and a cat-and their world soon expands dramatically (and colorfully, thanks to Kitty, a paintbrush the pencil creates). Complaints start to surface (" 'I shouldn't be smokinga pipe,' said a grandpa"), but the pencil's solution-an eraser-runs rampant and tries to rub out everything, including the pencil. Ingman exuberantly conveys the joy of both construction and destruction-in one scene, animals and people flee on foot, bicycle and skateboard as the eraser wipes away the spare, yellow background. The book's comical, unexpected plot and wry narrator keep the story fresh throughout-a running joke involves each of the pencil's creations insisting on a name; those the pencil provides are largely nonsensical (the endpapers are filled with additional items-a bike named Augusta, a cuckoo clock named William). Tranquility reigns by book's end, but young readers are sure to be absorbed in finding out what happens next as the pencil draws his way out of one predicament after another. Ages 4-8. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.K-Gr 2
"Once there was a pencil, a lonely little pencil, and nothing else." One day the pencil begins to draw. Before long it has created a world populated with rather cranky individuals, pets, and talking objects that make demands for names, food, companions, etc., and then begin to complain about everything they have received. The pencil tries to be accommodating and creates a paintbrush that adds color, to no avail. It draws an eraser to remove the offending items, which runs amok and erases everything. The pencil then comes up with a clever solution to prevent itself from being eliminated by the out-of-control eraser, and this time creates a more orderly world. This quirky story will appeal to children who have a slightly offbeat sense of humor, and it could easily be paired with Henrik Drescher's equally quirky Simon's Book (McAdam/Cage, 2006). Ingman's acrylic cartoon illustrations use a rich color palette and supply numerous details that complement the story. Not an essential purchase, but fun.-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ
Overview
The creators of THE RUNAWAY DINNER and PREVIOUSLY team up to imagine the comical world that comes to life when a lonely pencil starts to draw.
"One day that little pencil made a move, shivered slightly, quivered somewhat . . . and began to draw."
Welcome back Banjo, the boy from THE RUNAWAY DINNER! Once a pencil draws him, there's no telling what will come next — a dog, a cat, a chase (of course), and a paintbrush to color in an ever-expanding group of family and friends. But it's not long before the complaints begin — "This hat looks silly!" "My ears are too big!" — until the poor pencil has no choice but to draw . . . an eraser. Oh no! In the hands of ...