The Life of a Crayon

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital advanced copy. This book tells the story of Green and his life as a crayon. The illustrations were wonderful, and I think this would be great for kids. I loved the ending, where the now grown-up girl puts the remnants of her old crayons into a candle for her son. This was a very sweet book and exceeded my expectations!

The Life of a Crayon
4 Stars

This is an interesting book, told from a Green's perspective.

Green takes us on his adventures and shows us where he and his little girl left their footprints throughout her life. We learn how a crayon grows shorter with age, while the human girl grows up. The Life of a Crayon helps kids and their families cope with life changes, the challenges of growing up. In a non-threatening way.

I love the colorful, child-like illustrations. I like that this book encourages you not to throw away old crayons. Recycle them! Melt them down to make a candle or use molds to make cut crayons into neat shapes.

Thank you, NetGalley and Shambhala Publications Inc, for an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This charming book documents the life journey of a green crayon and its owner.

"When Green arrives in a crayon box as a present to a little girl, he has no idea of the impact he will have on her life in small but profound and meaningful ways."


Green shares his adventures and feelings as he travels through life. Unfortunately he grows shorter and shorter as the little girl grows taller and taller each year.

The reader is invited to join them on their journey of creativity. As life progresses Green shrinks small and smaller but is never out of reach of his owner's loving hands. He definitely is the favourite colour in her crayon box above all the other colours present.

The now grown-up girl has a child of her own and is able to retain Green even longer by blending the remains of her old worn-out crayons together and making them into a beautiful candle for her son to enjoy.

I love this heartwarming sweet story and the illustrations are lovely to behold and very kid-friendly. The book lends itself to discussing colours, the aging process and recycling. This colourful story will have you re-assessing the value and love of the crayons in your own crayon box. What"s your favourite colour? I highly recommend it.

What a sweet gorgeous heartwarming story! The book follows the life of a green crayon and in turn follows the life of a young woman. Such a beautiful perspective of growing up and the drawing continuum. So many things you could explore with this book from colour to aging to waste and recycling! A great provocative read for the elementary/primary classroom.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Not me over here getting emotional over a crayon! What a beautiful story about things coming full circle, and the explorations through life. I found the illustrations to be very fun to look at with lots of little details in each page. Green was a “character” who was easy to love and root for. This was such a charming story and one I will repeat with my children through the years. Excellent work here, a new family favorite.

5 ⭐️

Don't mind me while I cut onions over here... my goodness the amount of emotions this little green crayon brought out in me feels so irrational haha.

This follows the story of a green crayon. When the crayon is new it's big and long, but over the years as it gets smaller the green crayon gets smaller and smaller to just a nub. While the girl continues to grow up. It's ok though as crayon hasn't reached it's end. It has made its mark in this world and is remembered by the pictures that were created.

This was such a sweet story and I loved it. I think my kids would also love it. What killed me though was the picture of the grandma at the end with the crayon. I'm not sure if the author was going for this but I saw it as how the grandma also made her mark on the world with her family.

Thank you to NetGalley and Shambhala Publishing for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

I will be posting my review to my instagram page the.littlest.bookworm and retail sites on or near publication date.

The life of a crayon is never boring and crayons forever live with us. This is the story reminded to me by The Life of a Crayon. It's a wonderful reminder of how our art can be anything and everything while leaving a lasting impression and memory on our hearts forever. This inspirational story captivated my children, ages 7 through 2, as we went through Green's life and the pictures and memories he made.

Thank you, NetGalley and Shambhala Publications, Inc, for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this beautiful children's story.

Ummm.. is someone chopping onions. What a emotional book…sobbing! This is definitely a new favorite children’s book. I loved it so much. It was a beautiful story about a crayon’s journey “ getting smaller and smaller” and by leaving it’s mark in the world around them through artwork. It was such a sweet message. I can’t wait to read it to my littles and will be purchasing copies to send to friends.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Green crayon belongs to Sadie. They grow up together creating beautiful drawings. They go to school, make friends, and learn numbers.
As time goes on green starts to west down but even as he gets smaller, he knows he’s leaving a small piece of himself behind in every drawing he makes.

This is a cute story of the life cycle of a crayon and the girl he belongs to. The illustrations include colorful drawings throughout created by crayon himself. 5is is perfect for young budding artists, art classrooms, or any child inspired by art!

This book is about the growth and acceptance of your path and shows how change can be a good thing from the eyes of a crayon. So many great themes to discuss with students from a perspective they would understand.

- This book, although it is about how a crayon is used up, could be a good way to explore the circle of life with older students. I like that you could talk about how books have a surface level meaning and then can be used to teach a metaphor for life lesson as well if you dig a little deeper.

This was a cute children’s book about 1 crayon that was used over the years and repurposed into a candle at the end when he was too small to be used. Very cute children’s book with illustrations.

The Life of a Crayon is a heartwarming story! It is told from the perspective of the green crayon and tells of all the adventures it had in its life. This book provides an opportunity to talk about growing up, being creative, and recycling. I am excited to read this book with my 3rd graders because of its message and beautiful illustrations.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this advanced readers copy.

Grab your crayon boxes, perhaps some tissue, and be ready for a read that will definitely tug at your heart strings! Have I mentioned that GREEN is my favorite color?! 💚

The Life of a Crayon is the latest picture book in #GGsBookStack and one you’ll definitely want to add to your bookshelves!

A little about this gem of a read…

Sadie Mae is gifted a box of crayons for her birthday and quickly becomes fond of the color Green. 💚

Their journey together marks for one of celebration, creativity, learning lessons and skills along the way, and creating a world together.

But like all things, good things come to an end…or maybe not. Green teaches Sadie Mae and readers about the concept on how some gifts just keep giving. 😭💚

What else to love about this endearing book? 💚

✅ The embedded themes of connections, cycles, growing up, dealing with change, and leaving your mark.

✅ The lovely, lovely illustrations (watercolor, chalk, color pencils) that are delightful, intricate, warm, and inviting. The colorful illustrations include child-like sketches that simply steal your heart.

✅The attention to details (e.g., the French Press sitting on the kitchen table as the grandparents enjoy a cup of coffee while marveling over the illustrations sent to them, and later seeing a portrait of Sadie’s grandmother on an end table).

✅ The storyline that is so relatable to both children and adults.

✅The emotions evoked with the turning of EVERY. SINGLE. PAGE. 😭🥰😊🥹



Be on the lookout for this pick! It’s coming to bookshelves next month on February 28th! 💚
Happy reading, book friends! 💝

👋🏼 A special thanks to @shambhala_publications and @netgalley for the digital ARC.


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A sweet book that inspires imagination in children. The ending was adorable as well and I love how the author used the crayon to bridge generations from the girls grandparents receiving pictures down to her own daughter.

The Life of a crayon," tells us a story of a green crayon and his life journey growing "Down". The chalky-like illustration contributes much vibrancy that will draw the readers to engage in the story. I love how Green gets a happy ending. The Life of a Crayon will be an ideal gift for young readers.

Special thanks to NetGalley, Christopher Willard, and to Shambhala Publications Inc. for providing me an opportunity to read this beautiful book in advance.

I will never throw another crayon away. This was the sweetest book and should absolutely be in every little ones library. I can’t get over the cuteness. Also wow those illustrations! So pretty

Another reviewer stated that The Life of a Crayon surpassed their expectations, and I couldn't agree more. The story is incredibly sweet and layered for kids and adults alike. The illustrations are fun and whimsical, working perfectly in tandem with the words. This is a keeper!

Thanks to NetGalley for access to the e-ARC of this picture book.

This is a sweet story that explores the many ways Sadie Mae and her crayon have grown and impacted the lives of people around them. I can see it being a great vehicle for deeper conversations with children about connection to others and the impact they and their actions can have without realising it. I would r commend this book to families, teachers and libraries.

WHY DID THIS MAKE ME CRY AT THE END?! I WAS NOT READY FOR THAT. WHY DID NO ONE PREPARE ME FOR THAT? THAT WAS MEAN. I WASN'T READY.

I thought this story was just so sweet! It was such a lovely story about a crayon who creates all of these incredible pictures with this little girl and he follows her through life and then when he can't help her create anymore, he transforms to become a light for her son. Oh my god. It was just SO SWEET. I loved it so much.

I loved how this book showed a life span of a crayon. I think this a great book to teach kindness or POV. It is also great to talk about for Earth Day

This book was so cute!!! I loved the pictures and their style as if they were drawn with crayons. It was the story though that pulled me in. How the crayon accompanied her through her entire life and then eventually found its end by being used to create something new.

In this colorful book we are following a little girl who takes favor to the green crayon in her box.
We follow her and the journey she takes with this crayon.

She makes keepsake drawings for her family that travel through mail, she learns lessons of good behavior and feelings with her crayon and then learns to write and count.

After showing the importance this color and crayon had in her life, it then shows how she continues that on for children of her own.

The illustrations are so bright and fun!

A sweet story of a green crayon and its journey through a child's life. I loved the progression of the girl's art skills as she grew from a toddler to a young adult. The story was made sweeter by the fact that the girl turned her crayons into a candle for her child when the crayons were too small to color anymore was a lovely twist at the end.

I need a hardcover copy of this book in my classroom asap. This is the cutest story of a crayon and so heartwarming.

"The Life of a Crayon" is an official favorite!

A tale of how much a green crayon can leave its mark on a little girl and her whole world. From the art table to her bedroom walls her green crayon grows down and transforms all the while bringing comfort and light to a little girl.

The illustrations are well thought out as they illustrate the story of a young girl and her green crayon. Loving the color palette and character design. Sweet and familiar feeling, the illustrations are a heartwarming touching to an already touching tale.

I fully intend to purchase this book to share with my little one. This is a 5 star book and nothing less!

The Life of a Crayon is an absolutely heartwarming and bittersweet story. I read this to my 4 year old and it had me a little teary eyed at the end! It touches on the circle of life and adults will certainly have more understanding/relatability than the children reading as it is quite sentimental.. but children will absolutely enjoy it as well. The illustrations are beautiful and the story is captivating. I think it is a bookshelf and the classroom must have.

Thank you to Shambhala Publications, Inc., Bala Kids and NetGalley for this ARC

The tagline is perfect to introduce this book to you all: ‘A Colorful Story of Never-Ending Beginnings.’

Green, along with the rest of his crayon family, has just been gifted to a little girl on her birthday. He isn’t sure yet of what role he will play in her life, but as she grows, he diminishes, albeit in wonderful ways. He sees his ‘green’ in all her artwork and also in the world around him. But as time passes by and he continues to grow smaller, what will happen to him?

This is a very simple and yet sweet story. The little girl clearly loves to draw, so the book is filled with her sketches. Green obviously has a pride of place in most of her artwork, which include drawings, school projects and greeting cards. His legacy is quite clear by the end of the book.

For a book about a crayon, the illustrations have to be good. The book doesn’t disappoint in this aspect. Every page is a rainbow of colour, with every hue popping out from the page with gusto. Green, of course, is omnipresent on each page. The illustrations contain sketches of the many drawings made by the little girl. I liked how the drawings grow more polished as she grows older.

A part of me wished for some interactions with the rest of the crayons as well, especially as Green calls them his family. But the story is Green’s alone and the narrative doesn’t diverge from his angle.

This book is somewhat bittersweet. Green’s reduced size is quite sad, until we realise that in sacrificing himself, he has left a vital stamp on the world around him. It subtly covers the idea of the circle of life, and also includes a novel idea of recycling old crayons, though I am not sure of how practical it is, especially as the process isn’t mentioned in the book.

I feel that adults will derive far more meaning from this book than children will. The content is a bit too sentimental for young minds to grasp with full intensity. Nevertheless, it is a poignant and heartwarming book. If not the story, the illustrations will surely provide joy to everyone.

3.75 stars.

My thanks to Shambhala Publications and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Life of a Crayon”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

So adorable! Loved this!

A little girl grows fond of her green crayon and carries it with her through all of life’s big moments. When she grows up and has a child of her own, they find the green crayon in her art box and decide to melt it down and repurpose it as a candle.

I loved the images in this book as well as the message ❤️

Great story for Kindergarten teachers to read to a class. The illustrations are wonderful and could lead to asking students to recreate a favourite part of the story using crayons.