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"Just try to stay cranky during a read-aloud of this one!"

—Kirkus Reviews

A Very Cranky Book

Are you ready to meet the world’s crankiest book?

Cranky doesn’t want to be read. He just wants you to leave him alone. After all, there are so many other things you can do—ride a bike, play a game, or draw a picture. There’s no reason for you to be bothering him! But when other books show up for story time, will Cranky change his mind?

Angela and Tony DiTerlizzi, two creative forces, have crafted a story as silly as it is clever. In the vein of Grumpy Monkey and The Day the Crayons Quit, this tale humorously explores the big emotions of one very cranky book.

Published: September 19, 2023
Ages: 4-8
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins Purchase Info

Extras

Browse Art

Check out this very cranky gallery!

Discussion Guide

Teachers! Download a discussion guide for A Very Cranky Book

Activities

Get cranky with these activities inspired by the book.

Desktop Wallpaper

Download this wallpaper featuring Cranky!

Book Trailer

Meet the world’s crankiest book in this trailer.

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Praise

“Just try to stay cranky during a read-aloud of this one!”
–Kirkus Reviews

“...driving home the importance of readers to books”
–Publisher's Weekly

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Tony DiTerlizzi: Never abandon imagination.

Imagination is a world of possibility that exists within each of us. It is what makes us uniquely human. It is our creative fingerprint that touches and influences the world around us. Imagination is essential to art and science; to innovation and prosperity. It gives us hope, calls us to action and leads to change.

Whether it’s fairies, dragons, robots or aliens, all of my children’s book characters are siblings born of my imagination – an imagination strengthened through years of encouragement from family, teachers and friends. While so many others abandoned it during their transition from childhood to adulthood, I fiercely held onto mine, hoping for a day when I could share it to inspire the next generation of dreamers. Innovators. World changers.

Imagination empowers us to envision and create a reality of what could be. We must hold it dear, foster it and never abandon it.