Picture Book Review #2 - DRAW!

Draw! by Raúl Colón

1.     BIBLIOGRAPHY

Colón, Raúl. Draw! New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2014.  ISBN 978-1-442-49492-3

2.     PLOT SUMMARY

Draw! is a wordless picture book that tells the story of a boy in his room who one day, after reading a book about Africa, daydreams of his own adventures in Africa.  The boy starts telling a story by drawing a great African adventure.  With a canteen slung over his shoulder and a backpack stuffed full of sandwiches and a questionable umbrella, the boy befriends an elephant who stands patiently as the boy sets off to draw his African adventure.  Riding high on the elephant, seeing the landscape spread out before him, he spies zebras, giraffes, lions, gorillas, and rhinos. He actually gets chased up a tree by the rhino.  The tables are turned on him when he meets up with the monkeys and one starts drawing him.  I am glad he has brought enough sandwiches as the animals are hungry as they sit while he draws. The story ends with him back in his bed daydreaming about his adventure.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This book is incredible in its storytelling considering that there are no words that actually describes what it is happening. Instead, the reader is taken on a more visual journey with many details included to give a more realistic view of the boy’s daydreams. Despite the lack of words used within the book, the use of illustrations to tell a simple story about how powerful imagination can be is a really great story for many kids to read.

The use of what looks like pencil drawings in the actual real life part of this story compared to the rich vibrant colors used during the daydreams helps separate the story further to prevent confusion. Also, the amount of details within the pictures would be a great book to use for kids who like looking at details. This is a great book to use as well for kids who also love art. There was something about the illustrations, the peacefulness of the animals as they stood to be drawn. The animals looked life-like and that is a real plus.

4.  REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book – 2014

School Library Journal Best Picture Book – 2014

ALA Notable Children’s Books, Younger Readers Category – 2015

From Kirkus: “Colón’s signature scratched-watercolor technique adds richness and emotion to this warm story, but it's the framing scenes at beginning and end that really sparkle here.”

 From Publisher’s Weekly: “It’s a strongly developed and executed account of a childhood fantasy, urging all young artists to dream and to draw.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other Raúl Colón illustrated books to read such as:

Tomas and the Library Lady,  ISBN:  978-0-375-80349-9

Dona Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman with a Great Big Heart,

    ISBN: 978-0-375-82337-4

Students can create their own story with drawings of their choice. After the students draw two to four pictures, the students can tell their story to the rest of the class.

Read the following read-a-like books:

Thomson, Bill, Chalk, ISBN:  978-0-761-45526-4

Meyers, Christopher, My Pen, ISBN:  978-1-423-10371-4

Ludwig, Trudy, The Invisible Boy, ISBN: 978-1-582-46450-3