So, The Day the Crayons Quit is fairly acclaimed, as far as year-old picture books go. It won the 2013 Goodreads Choice Award for picture books, which is how I discovered it (and, no, before you ask, it was not my vote; I favored The Dark by Lemony Snicket). I've seen it called "laugh-out-loud funny", "the best new children's book of 2013", "one of the best picture books of all time", "a winner for sure", etcetera--just about any praise you can come up with, this book's received it from somebody. And, uh, I ain't seeing it.
Sure, it's a cute book. The crayons on pissed about their repetitive lives--they keep being used for the same things!--and they rebel. Little Duncan learns to think outside the box, so to speak. Yadda, yadda, the end. That's a really typical kidlit message right there, and I think I've seen it so many times that I simply cannot be bothered to care about another delivery that isn't outright fantastic. And while The Day the Crayons Quit is an entertaining concept, it's also kind of a one-note gimmick. I can't really be amused for thirty pages about the idea of angsty crayons, and I'm kind of surprised that so many people can.
Me, I can totally take it or leave it.
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