Red Yellow Blue

by Lysa Mullady MA, Laurent Simon (Illustrator)

Overview

Red loves being red! Sometimes, he's too focused on red. Through the unconditional kindness of the other colors, he sees that he is part of a whole, and the best things come from working together.

Red loves being red! Apples, wagons, fire trucks — he thinks all the best things are red! Yellow admires Red’s roses, but Red just wants to be left to mind his own business — why can’t Yellow mind hers? But when Yellow and Blue go off to make frogs, shamrocks, and caterpillars, Red realizes that he may be missing out. The possibilities are endless when the colors work together!

Includes a Note to Parents and Caregivers with more information on encouraging empathy and cooperation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433830303
Publisher:	American Psychological Association
Publication date:	08/06/2019
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	550L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Lysa Mullady is the author of Bye Bye, Pesky Fly, which was her first book. She has been an elementary school counselor for 30 years and is known for her engaging, enthusiastic, and creative counseling style. Her passion is to teach her students to be problem solvers by talking it out and thinking good things. Lysa was born and raised on Long Island, where she still lives with her family and two golden-doodles. You can find her on the weekends enjoying the beach with her husband, walking the dogs and searching for beach glass, all while imagining ways to help others become the best they can be. Visit lysamullady.com.

Laurent Simon graduated from the Emile Cohl School of Art in Lyon in 2001. After a brief stint at the illustration agency Costume 3 Pièces, he went back to a drawing career in 2009, mostly creating advertisements and posters. In 2011, he penned his first work, Cacophonie à Fabémol, illustrated by Marie Flusin. Since then, he’s been illustrating and sometimes writing children’s books and stories for children’s magazines. He works with his wife in Saint-Etienne, France. Visit laurent-simon.ultra-book.com.

Editorial Reviews

Fans of Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld's Friendshape (2015) or Michael Hall's Perfect Square (2011) may find this title complementary…comes with a potentially useful note to adults on how to use the book to promote self-esteem and forgiveness. Color science and emotional literacy…” —Kirkus Reviews

“Going beyond the relationship between red, yellow, and blue as colors, there is an equally significant exploration of the relationship between Red, Yellow, and Blue as sensitive, feeling characters. As the story progresses, Red experiences a wide spectrum of feelings, including worry, frustration, annoyance, and later a sense of belonging and pride. The deeper layers to the story will encourage emotional exploration and prompt discussion with older children… Perfect for social and emotional learning, this picture book cleverly melds life lessons with an introduction to the primary colors.” —School Library Journal

“This book helps children navigate the balance between knowing what is their business and how they can cooperate with others. Great for a friendship and art lesson combined.” —Oregon Coast Youth Book Preview Center

“This is a wonderful book about teamwork, acceptance, kindness, forgiveness, self-esteem and emotions.” —Storywraps

From the Publisher

07/26/2019

PreS-Gr 1- Red is very proud of all his creations. He is hard at work coloring roses and apples, fire trucks and wagons. Yellow and Blue want to work together to make even more beautiful things, but Red would rather go it alone. Only when Yellow and Blue show how delightful the color green can be does Red realize that working singly can be lonely. All of the colors finally come together to awaken a beautiful sunset. The illustrations are high-contrast and streamlined, boldly floating on a white background. The anthropomorphic characters are transparent, which aids in demonstrating secondary colors. For example, young children can easily see that orange appears when red and yellow overlap. Further samples of each color abound in the fun shapes and objects floating around the pages, such as orange apricots, goldfish, and butterflies. The color wheel instruction is best suited to preschool and kindergarten children, but the book has much more to offer. Going beyond the relationship between red, yellow, and blue as colors, there is an equally significant exploration of the relationship between Red, Yellow, and Blue as sensitive, feeling characters. As the story progresses, Red experiences a wide spectrum of feelings, including worry, frustration, annoyance, and later a sense of belonging and pride. The deeper layers to the story will encourage emotional exploration and prompt discussion with older children. The back matter, intended for adult readers, offers suggestions and strategies to support the healthy emotional development of children. VERDICT Perfect for social and emotional learning, this picture book cleverly melds life lessons with an introduction to the primary colors.-Alyssa Annico, Youngstown State University, OH

School Library Journal

2019-06-16
A text-heavy metanarrative about emotions and friendship.

The three primary colors (and characters), Red, Yellow, and Blue, spend time together, but Red is prone to outbursts and does not want to be involved in the business of Yellow or Blue. As Red grumpily pushes Yellow and Blue away, he realizes what he misses out on in isolation: the ability to make different colors such as orange and purple and the chance for friendship. With an apology, Red is able to rejoin forces with Yellow and Blue to make a sunset. Although the primary lesson is about collaboration, each color also celebrates what they can accomplish on their own. Fans of Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld's Friendshape (2015) or Michael Hall's Perfect Square (2011) may find this title complementary. White negative space makes pill bug-shaped Red, sunburst-shaped Yellow, and raindrop-shaped Blue pop, drawing eyes right to the illustrations. Plain, serif black text feels crowded and at odds with the sparse page design and playful illustrations, which sometimes stretch from verso to recto. In some spreads, the text disrupts the playful art it is supposed to be working with. Even though the narrative might not seem novel and the art does seem occasionally clunky, it comes with a potentially useful note to adults on how to use the book to promote self-esteem and forgiveness.

Color science and emotional literacy go fairly well together. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews