The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon [Hardcover]

Crockett Johnson (Author, Illustrator)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (May 3, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006029129X
• ISBN-13: 978-0060291297
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #37,245 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a parent's delight, October 2, 2008

By 

M. Heiss (USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon (Hardcover)

I used to love reading this book to the kids, before the baby became a toddler (see below).

The drawings are clear. That little Harold is so darling -- all head and crayon and cuteness. The stories take Harold on adventures that always end safely at home in bed.

They are a fun way to imagine... what comes next? When we make up family stories, sometimes we try to find new directions to take a story, especially when one gets sidetracked (by silliness, grossness, etc. -- I have boys). These Harold stories do exactly the same thing: when Harold gets stuck, or nervous, or in danger, he just imagines his way out of it.

The books are very clever. The illustrations are basically line drawings, but they convey the story perfectly. I like this collection because it has 4 Harold stories together.

Anyway, my youngest went through a book-ripping phase about a year ago, so we put up all the books with pages and kept the board books down at his level. Somehow, Harold got misplaced. We got it out again this week, and to my joy, yesterday the 6-year old was reading it to the 3-year-old. They were laughing and giggling about the book, and I fell in love with the story all over again.

Awesome book.

***updated*** this book includes four stories:

Harold and the Purple Crayon
Harold's Fairy Tale
Harold's Trip to the Sky
Harold's Circus

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Second Book Review ( I'm Salena Legg, age 8), December 15, 2010

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon (Hardcover)

I really liked "The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon" because it had adventures that I liked. I liked the designs that Harold drew on the wall, but I'm not allowed to draw on the wall. In the last chapter, Harold makes a circus that comes alive and he stands up on a rope and begins to fall and he tries to catch his balance. On the last page people are all around and give him a big hand of applause. He draws a lion without teeth then he sticks his head in the lion's mouth. Then he draws teeth. Then he draws monkey bar rings and he swings from ring to ring. He shoots out of a cannon. He draws a lemonade stand with a man selling lemonade. He draws a tall man and short guy. He draws a fat lady. He draws a clown. I will probably read the book again when I'm thirteen!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful, imaginative tale, February 9, 2008

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon (Hardcover)

When I encountered this book for the first time, I lamented the fact that I was unaware of it when my daughter was young. She would have loved it. Harold is a toddler with a magic purple crayon. With it, he can make anything he wants and engage in the most imaginative and creative adventures. When Harold needs something, he simply draws it.
Some of Harold's adventures are flying in a rocket, landing on another planet, meeting an alien, riding a shooting star back home and eating a bowl of hot oatmeal. The adventures are not structured in the sense that the next event is largely unpredictable, which is consistent with the wandering that a child's mind will do.