The Day the Crayons Came Home Delivers Comedy and Colorful Characters

The Day the Crayons Came Home, the newest book in the uproarious Crayon chronicles, arrives August 18. This time, rather than receiving a bunch of letters from disgruntled crayons—Beige feeling inferior to Brown, Black complaining about only being used to outline, and Orange and Yellow at war over which is the true color of the sun—it’s postcards that land in Duncan’s mailbox. They’re from the many crayons that he’s lost, broken, forgotten, or neglected over the years, and these colorful little guys are hoping their pal Duncan can help them out.
Readers will be happy to encounter some old friends like Yellow and Orange (they finally agree on the real color of the sun—hot!) and some delightful newbies like Glow in the Dark Crayon, whose ghost and goblin drawings really do glow in the dark.

The Day the Crayons Came Home is a stellar follow-up, sure to entertain fans of the first book as well as those new to Duncan and his crew. Daywalt brings the waxy little characters to life with comical and delightful personification, and Jeffers combines photographic postcards with childlike illustrations that really help the crayons to jump off the page and, if they’re lucky, back into the safety of Duncan’s crayon box.
Curious about what these colors have been up to? Check out what a few of your faves are doing in a roundup we’re calling The Crayons: Where Are They Now?
Maroon: It kind of figures that this dark red shade would end up marooned in the couch cushions after only being used once to draw a scab. Poor guy was then broken in half when Duncan’s dad sat on him! Thankfully, he met a nice fellow named Paperclip who nursed him back to health.
Pea Green: Pea Green? Who’s that? Oh! You must mean Esteban the Magnificent (the crayon formerly known as Pea Green). It turns out that no one really likes peas or the color pea green, so he changed his name and ran away to see the world.
Neon Red: Sure, the idea of being on a permanent vacation sounds awesome, but the reality of it for Neon Red meant being left behind at the hotel pool—for eight months!—and having to find his own way home. He’s pretty sure he has to pass through China, Canada, and France and then turn right at the giant pyramids in New Jersey to get back to Duncan’s. Looks like Neon Red is in for quite a trip.
Yellow and Orange: In a shocking turn of events, the two colors that used to loathe each other because of that whole color-of-the-sun argument are now stuck with each other—literally. Duncan left them outside, and they melted together.
Big Chunky Toddler Crayon: OK, so this fellow doesn’t even belong to Duncan—Big Chunky Toddler Crayon is Duncan’s baby brother’s. But after having his head bitten off, getting stuffed in the cat’s nose, and being used to color garbage, he just can’t take it anymore! So now he’s pleading for asylum with Duncan.
Check out what the rest of the gang is up to in The Day the Crayons Came Home, out August 18 (and currently available for preorder).