Ryers Readers - The Day The Crayons Quit

Episode Date: September 29, 2023

These crayons have things to say, and today is the day they are going to say them!

Let's do this! Thank you so much for tuning into today's story. Don't forget to rate and follow, so you never miss out on all the Ryer's Reader's fun. And if you're looking for even more fun, come join me on the Ryer's Reader's Patreon page, where you can find ad-free episodes, bonus content, and even become a Ryer's Reader's celebrity.

Before we get into the story, do you want to know a fun fact? Did you know that a long time ago, before trucks and engines were invented, firefighters used horses to help put out fires. They used the horses to pull large steam machines that would spray the water. The first ever fire trucks were actually horse-drawn carriages. Pretty cool, huh? Okay.

Story time. Today, we are going to read, The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew DeWalt. One day in class, Duncan went to take out his crayons and found a stack of letters with his name on them. Hey, Duncan, it's me, red crayon. We need to talk. You make me work harder than any of the other crayons. All year long, I wear myself out coloring, fire engines, apples, strawberries, strawberries. and everything else that's red.

I even work on the holidays. I have to color all the Santas at Christmas and all the hearts on Valentine's Day. I need a rest. Your overworked friend, red crayon. Here, Duncan. All right, listen. I love that I am your favorite crayon

for grapes, dragons, and wizard hats, but it makes me crazy that so much of my... gorgeous color goes outside the lines. If you don't start coloring inside the line soon, I'm going to completely lose it. Your very neat friend, purple crayon. Dear Duncan, I'm tired of being called light brown or dark tan because I am neither. I am beige and I am proud. I am also tired of being second place to Mr. Brown crayon. It's not fair that Brown gets all the bears, ponies, and puppies, while I only get things like turkey dinners, if I'm lucky. And wheat. And let's be honest,

when was the last time you saw a kid excited about coloring wheat? Your beige friend, beige crayon. Duncan, gray crayon here. You're killing me. I know you love Ellen. I love Ellen. I love elephants, and I know that elephants are gray, but that's a lot of space to color all by myself. And don't even get me started on your rhinos, hippos, and humpback whales. You know how tired I am after handling one of those things? Such big animals. Maybe penguins are gray, you know? And so are tiny rocks, pebbles.

How about one of those once in a while? To give me a break? Your very tired friend. Gray crayon. Dear Duncan, you color with me, but why? Most of the time, I'm the same color as the page you're using me on. White. If I didn't have a black outline, you wouldn't even know I was there.

I'm not even in the rainbow. I'm only used to color snow or to fill an empty space between other things. and it leaves me feeling, well, empty. We need to talk. Your empty friend, white crayon. Hi, Duncan. I hate being used to draw the outline of things. Things that are colored in by other colors,

all of which think they're brighter than me. It's not fair when you use me to draw a nice beach ball and then fill in the colors of the ball with all the other colors. They're crayons. How about a black beach ball sometime? Is that too much to ask? Your friend, black crayon. Dear Duncan, as green crayon, I am writing for two reasons. One is to say that I like my work. Loads of crocodiles, trees, dinosaurs, and frogs. I have no problems and wish to congratulate you on a very successful coloring things green career so far. The second reason I write is,

is for my friends, yellow crayon and orange crayon, who are no longer speaking to each other. Both crayons feel they should be the color of the sun. Please settle this soon because they're driving the rest of us crazy. Your happy friend, green crayon. Dear Duncan, yellow crayon here, I need you to tell orange crayon that I am the color of the sun. I would tell him, but we are no longer speaking.

And I can prove I'm the color of the sun too. Last Tuesday, you used me to color in the sun on your Happy Farm coloring book, and in case you've forgotten, it's on page 7. You can't miss me. I'm shining down brilliantly on a field of yellow corn. Your pal and the true color of the sun. Yellow crayon. Dear Duncan, I see yellow crayon already talked to you, the big whiner.

Anyway, could you please tell Mr. Tattletale that he is not the color of the sun? I would, but we are no longer speaking. We both know I am clearly the color of the sun because, on Thursday, you used me to color the sun on both the Monkey Island and the Meet the Zookeeper pages in your day at the zoo coloring book. Orange, you glad I'm here. Your pal. And the real color of the sun.

Orange crayon. Dear Duncan. It has been great being your favorite color this past year. And the year before. And the year before that. I have really enjoyed all of those oceans and lakes and rivers, raindrops, and rain clouds and clear skies. But the bad news is,

is that I'm so short and stubby I can't even see over the railing in the crayon box anymore. I need a break. Your very stubby friend, blue crayon. Duncan, okay, listen here, kid. You have not used me once in the past year. It's because you think I'm a girl's color, isn't it? Speaking of which, please tell your little sister,

I said thank you for using me to color in her little princess color. I think she did a fabulous job of staying inside the lines. Now, back to us. Could you please use me some time to color the occasional pink dinosaur or monster or cowboy? Goodness knows they could use a splash of color. Your unused friend, pink crayon. Hey, uh, Duncan, it's me. Peach crayon.

Why did you peel off my paper wrapping? Now I'm naked and too embarrassed to leave the crayon box. I don't even have any underwear. How would you like to go to school naked? I need some clothes. Help! Your naked friend, peach crayon. Poor Duncan just wanted to color.

And, of course, he wanted his friends to be happy. And that gave him an idea. Duncan made the most creative and colorful picture ever. A big bright yellow sky with a green ocean, a giant pink dinosaur, a black rainbow, some blue sand and an orange whale. When Duncan showed his teacher his new picture, she gave him an A for coloring and an A plus for creativity. The end. Don't forget to stick around to see if you can answer today's page. Paying Attention Question. Before you go, do you think you can answer today's paying attention question?

Which two colors were fighting over who was the real color of the sun? If your answer was yellow crayon and orange crayon, you did it! Great job! You sure were paying attention! I hope you enjoyed that story. I wonder what we're going to read next.