Bookie Woogie: Bill Thomson

Monday, January 24, 2011

Review #84: Chalk

Dad: Today we bring you "Chalk" by Bill Thomson.
Gracie (age 10): The book is called "Chalk" because it is about chalk.
Lily (age 7): Magic chalk.
Gracie: It's about these three kids -- two girls and one naughty boy.
Elijah (age 5): No, he's a good boy.
Gracie: The three kids go to the park on a rainy day. Their names should be... Ninka, Dinka, and Stinka. Stinka is the naughty boy.
Elijah: No! Good boy! Good boy!
Isaac (age 12): At the park they see this dinosaur toy...
Lily: It is a bouncy one. A bouncy ride-on dinosaur.
Gracie: Oh yeah, I love bouncies! Those toys are the coolest things ever. Even though we are way too old for them.
Lily: On the bouncy dinosaur they find a chalk bag.
Isaac: They think "Ooo - some chalk. Let's draw some pictures." The first girl draws a sun, and it turned real in the sky. And they thought "Awesome!"
Gracie: The drawing pops up and goes up into the sky and makes a sunny day.
Dad: So what does that mean? Are there two suns in the world now? I suppose it's not supposed to be logical... just fun.
Gracie: Dad!!! We are talking about magic chalk! And you are looking for logical things?
Dad: Ha ha ha...
Isaac: Then the second girl picks up some chalk and draws a million butterflies.
Gracie: Hundreds and millions of butterflies.
Lily: And the butterflies go up into the sky. Then the boy - he is sneaky and bad - he is a naughty, naughty boy - he draws a dinosaur.
Gracie: It comes to life. And the kids all run away screaming.
Dad: Do you think the boy knew it would turn dangerous? Maybe he was just excited to see a dinosaur and didn't think about the repercussions.
Gracie: But look at his face!
Isaac: Yeah, he knew what was going to happen... he is a stinker.
Elijah: No, he's good! He's good because he saves everyone by drawing water!
Lily: The boy has an idea. He is hiding in the tube slide, and he draws a rain cloud.
Gracie: It's the one smart thing he's ever done.
Lily: And then it starts raining. And when you see this part, it's sort of gross... the dinosaur starts melting.
Dad: Because he's chalk.
Lily: It's gross. It reminds me of Wizard of Oz. Bad guys always get melted because they are terrible and bad.
Gracie: Bad guys end up as little green pools when they get hit with water.
Dad: Green guys and water don't mix. So here's the obvious first question for you: What would you guys draw if you had magic chalk?
Lily: Puppies! And dog food.
Elijah: I would draw a baby. Then we could have two newborn babies!
Dad: Wow - you like babies so much that you already want another one?
Elijah: Yes! And this one would be a boy.
Isaac: I would draw a roomful of magic chalk. I would draw a giant underground room with more magic chalk in it.
Gracie: I would draw a million dollars!
Dad: So you would be a counterfeiter, Gracie?
Isaac: (singing) Gracie's breaking the la-aw, Gracie's breaking the la-aw.
Gracie: What's a counterfeiter?
Dad: Someone that makes his own money.
Isaac: And it's illegal.
Gracie: Okay then. I would draw seventy-seven thousand pandas. Because right now there are not many pandas left in the world.
Dad: Ah, reversing extinction is a much nobler pursuit than counterfeiting.
Mom: (chiming in) I would draw a buffet table. Chinese buffet. With crab rangoon and cream cheese wontons.
Gracie: I would draw a chocolate fondue fountain!
Isaac: NO. I would draw a giant pig.
Gracie: What?
Isaac: It would be the world's biggest pig.
Gracie: What would you do with the world's biggest pig?
Isaac: Give it to poor people. And they can all eat pig and they'd never run out of food.
Dad: How would you describe the pictures in this book?
Gracie: Realistic!
Isaac: They look like photographs.
Gracie: They almost look like reality.
Dad: The word for that is "Photorealism." That's when a painting is so real it looks like a photograph.
Lily: It helps it make the dinosaur look more scary. Really really scary.
Isaac: What are the pictures made with? It doesn't even look like he used an art utensil.
Dad: Acrylic paint and colored pencils. Just like materials we have.
Isaac: How long do you think it took for him to make this book?
Gracie: I bet each page took three weeks.
Isaac: I'd bet a page a month.
Dad: What else is unique about this book?
Gracie: There aren't any words, so you get to make up the words. And that means you get more involved in the story.
Isaac: He's got to make a sequel.
Lily: Make a series please. Then we'll know what's happening with the chalk. Like if someone else comes over to use the chalk.
Dad: Right -- at the end of the book the kids leave the chalk behind.
Lily: That makes me wonder if someone else finds it.
Isaac: Every kid who reads this book is going to go looking for that chalk.