What Is a Color?

by Alice Provensen, Martin Provensen

An imaginative introduction to the basic colors relating them to familiar objects

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

Hardcover

First published May 1, 1978

About the author

Alice Provensen collaborated with her late husband, Martin, on numerous highly acclaimed picture books, including the Caldecott Medal-winning The Glorious Flight and Nancy Willard's Newbery Medal-winning A Visit to William Blake's Inn, which was also a Caldecott Honor Book. The Provensens have been on the New York Times list of the Ten Best Illustrated Books eight times.

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book presents young readers with a simple and expansive idea of color. What is a color? A color is a color! We travel through nine colors with simple introductions and examples of each color. Miniature drawings of items discussed are interspersed within the text, and sometimes the drawing takes the place of the word itself. Simple paintings with loose brushwork present pleasant renderings of each color that follows the color's introduction. The combination of the simple text and loosely painted illustrations convey a calming ambiance that makes for a perfect bedtime story. Additionally, young readers can follow along by waiting for the pictures of items interspersed within the text to be read out loud. Published in 1967, this book remains a classic that will still be enjoyed today. A must for home library collections and preschools.

[Kari · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little too wordy at times, but the 2 page color spreads are so vivid.