Harold's ABC (Purple Crayon Book)

by Crockett Johnson

Paperback, 1981

Status

Available

Call number

813.5

Collection

Publication

HarperCollins (1981), Edition: Illustrated, 64 pages

Description

Harold takes a trip to the moon and comes home again simply by drawing his way through the letters of the alphabet with a purple crayon.

User reviews

LibraryThing member AbigailAdams26
Harold explores the alphabet in this seventh and final story devoted to his crayon-created adventures, using each letter as a step in his imaginative game. From "A for Attic" to "Z for Zzzl" (or "little snore"), Harold incorporates each letter into his drawings, and into his story, giving the book
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more of an organic feeling than many other alphabet offerings. Setting out from home, he encounters everything from a giant to a witch, rides airplanes, lightning and kites, and eventually winds up (where else?) back home again...

I really enjoyed Harold's ABC, which marks the end of my recent Harold project. I never read Harold and the Purple Crayon or any of its sequels as a girl, so I am very glad to have finally become acquainted with this creative toddler and his crayon-fueled play. As with its predecessors, I appreciated the depiction of Harold's imaginative world, and the strength of his creative process. I was particularly impressed here by the way the letters were incorporated into the story and the artwork. A well done alphabet book, and a fitting conclusion to a brilliant series of tales!
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LibraryThing member tshrum06
This is an example of fantasy. It is a good example. Harold takes his purple crayon and then uses every letter of the alphabet to make some object that can help him have a fun adventure (like S makes a Sea Serpent that he can ride). It's set in present day and is set in an almost believable world.
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Almost everything he draws is based on real life things, and it's fantasy in that he uses a purple crayon and floating letters to take him away from home and back again.
Harold is a flat, static character. This story doesn't really have a complex plot or setting and the characterization is sort of irrelevant. It's just short story that goes through the alphabet. We don't learn much about Harold except, I suppose, that he is creative and adventurous, but he really doesn't change at all.
Media- Crayon, Charcoal, Pencil
Age Appropriateness- Primary
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LibraryThing member ander23
Integrating the brown letters into the purple illustrations allows the alphabet to be distinct enough that this book could be used as a teaching tool and connected in a way that makes one aware of how the drawings themselves are being made. I like that the story is a commentary on its own. 4 stars.

Subjects

Language

Original language

English

Physical description

7.5 inches

ISBN

0064430235 / 9780064430234
Page: 0.1937 seconds