Don't Let the Crayons Quit!

We All Love to Color, But Now the World’s Favorite Crayon Colors Have Threatened to Go on Strike!



Barnes & Noble Corte Madera Invites Children & Adults to Join in a Month-Long Campaign Called: ‘Don’t Let the Crayons Quit!’



Free & Fun Storytimes Celebrating the Bestselling Picture Book,The Day the Crayons Quit & Other Popular Stories



Barnes & Noble, Inc., the nation’s largest retail bookseller and the leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products, has just announced a month-long campaign at stores nationwide called, “Don’t Let The Crayons Quit!” The campaign is a joint effort with Penguin Young Readers Group, which was born from the story in the bestselling picture book, The Day the Crayons Quit, written by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers.



In The Day the Crayons Quit, each Crayon writes a letter expressing their grievance with how they are being used. Blue is always used as the color of the sky and the ocean, Red has to work on holidays, Black is only ever used to outline, Yellow and Orange are fighting over the true color of the sun. And now, the Crayons have announced their plans to quit on September 30.



The concept behind Barnes & Noble’s “Don’t Let the Crayons Quit!” campaign is to join together with our communities and respond to the Crayons’ grievances by using crayon colors in fun and imaginative ways so all Crayons are heard and no Crayon is left behind.



During the month of September, Barnes & Noble Corte Madera is asking children and adults to convince the Crayons to “not quit” by joining in a letter-writing, list-making, and picture-drawing campaign to support the Crayons. Barnes & Noble Corte Madera will have special Crayon Stationery and a “Message Box” for children and adults to submit their letters, lists, and pictures of all the reasons why the Crayons shouldn’t quit. Children and adults can submit as many messages to the Crayons as they want, and each time they place a message in the Barnes & Noble Message Box they will receive an “I support the CRAYONS” sticker. Crayola® is also joining in the campaign by donating nearly 300,000 free crayons, available in all Barnes & Noble stores for children and adults to use when creating their messages to the Crayons.



“We wanted to create a truly unique experience for children and adults and get communities across the country involved in a campaign that is really for readers of all ages,” said Mary Amicucci, Vice President, Adult Trade and Children’s Books, Barnes & Noble. “We are thrilled to be the exclusive location for this message-creating campaign to the Crayons and proud to showcase the creativity of the children and adults who participate. We believe that the underlying lessons that children participating in the events will discover are the importance of perseverance and the ability to influence change, while the adults participating in the events with their children will be reminded of what can be created when we think outside of the box,” Ms. Amicucci added.



“I'm utterly gobsmacked by how much Barnes & Noble has supported our book,” said Drew Daywalt, author of The Day the Crayons Quit. “Their commitment to kids and picture books, in general, has always been incredible, but this really blows me away. I hope readers come to the stores in September to support the striking Crayons. Then on September 30, we'll all get to see what happens on the day the Crayons threaten to quit.” Mr. Daywalt will make a special Storytime appearance at the Barnes & Noble store at The Grove in Los Angeles, CA, on Tuesday, September 30, at 4 p.m.



Barnes & Noble Corte Madera will collect the messages left in their Message Box, count them, and display the number of messages collected each week on a “Message Collection Meter,” updated twice per week. Once the messages are counted, they will be displayed in the store, and photos of all the messages collected will be taken and sent to the Barnes & Noble Social Media team, who will share the messages with the Crayons. On September 30, Barnes & Noble Corte Madera invites children and their families to a special Storytime event where messages to the Crayons collected during the month will be on display and one last effort will be given to convince the Crayons not to quit. The Crayons will announce their decision during the event, and children and adults will learn if their and their community’s efforts during the month were successful.



Barnes & Noble Corte Madera also will host four special Storytimes during September, each one supporting specific Crayons from The Day the Crayons Quit. Children ages 3+ will enjoy a reading of a popular picture book and a reading of the letters from the Crayons who are being supported at the event. Children will also have the chance to create their own messages to the Crayons on special Crayon Stationery, place their message in the Message Box, and receive an “I support the CRAYONS” sticker for their effort.



Customers may also enter a special Barnes & Noble Sweepstakes and upload a photo of their child’s message supporting the Crayons to Twitter or Instagram using #CrayonsDontQuit #BNSweeps for a chance to win a copy of The Day the Crayons Quit, a Barnes & Noble Gift Card and other prizes.



Additionally, during September, customers can purchase a Kids’ Horizon® Organic Milk or Motts® Juice & a Blondie, Brownie or Rice Krispy Bar for only $3.25 in the Barnes & Noble Café.



The “Don’t Let the Crayons Quit!” Storytimes schedule is as follows:



Saturday, September 6, 11 a.m.


Storytime Titles: How to Babysit a Grandma and How to Babysit a Grandpa by Jean Reagan


Blue, Red, and Gray feel overworked. They want some rest. After Storytime, children will find out how they can give these Crayons a much-needed break by using other colors in creative ways these Crayons are typically used for.



Tuesday, September 9, 11 a.m.


Storytime Title: Corduroy by Don Freeman


Beige, Black, Pink and White don’t feel important. They want to be used more. After Storytime, children will participate in activities using only these colors to show these Crayons how much they care.



Tuesday, September 16, 11 a.m.


Storytime Title: Llama, Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney


Peach is embarrassed without a wrapper and doesn’t want to come out of the box and color. After Storytime, children will get the chance to create fancy new wardrobe ideas for Peach using all the Crayons in an effort to make Peach feel confident and comfortable.



Tuesday, September 23, 11 a.m.


Storytime Title: Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble by Judy Schachner


The feud between Yellow and Orange over the true color of the sun has gone on too long. Green is requesting help in resolving their conflict. After Storytime, children will show Yellow and Orange all the wonderful things they can be, helping them realize they can, in fact, share the color of the sun!



These events will lead to the national “Will the Crayons Quit?” Storytime event on Tuesday, September 30, at 4 p.m. Participants will enjoy a reading of Daywalt’s and Jeffers’ popular picture book, march in a parade supporting the Crayons, and discover if the thousands of messages from kids in their community and nationwide worked as they experience the joy colors bring to life. Children will also enjoy the story rendered in beautiful high-resolution color on the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 NOOK.



"Not only has Barnes & Noble put together a great event for kids and picture books, they're also showing a commitment to Crayons everywhere,” said illustrator Oliver Jeffers. “Anyone, Crayon and child alike, who is ready to color outside the lines of convention, I hope you join us on September 30.” Mr. Jeffers will appear at a Storytime at the Union Square store in Manhattan on Tuesday, September 30, at 4 p.m., where he will sign copies of his book and entertain the children with a special reading of the story and secrets about his favorite colors.



Customers are encouraged to share their photos from the events on their social media pages via #crayonsdontquit and to follow Barnes & Noble on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr, and like Barnes & Noble on Facebook, for the latest information on “Don’t Let the Crayons Quit” Storytimes, including announcements about upcoming events and promotions. Fans of the book and events can also follow NOOK on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter. For more information, visit www.BN.com/crayonsdontquit.



Barnes & Noble Events are free and open to the public. Barnes & Noble Corte Madera is located at 313 Corte Madera Town Center, Corte Madera, CA 94925. For information about these or other events at Barnes & Noble Corte Madera, please contact Laurel Kidd, Community Business Development Manager, at crm2274@bn.com.



To connect with Barnes & Noble Corte Madera and stay up-to-date on our news & events:


Twitter: @CorteMaderaBN


Facebook: facebook.com/CorteMaderaBN


Full Calendar: store-locator.barnesandnoble.com/store/2274