George the Giant Giraffe and His Coloring Carnival
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
He opened his favorite coloring book, “George the Giant Giraffe's Coloring Carnival”. He curled his legs underneath him, then dumped the whole box of crayons on the floor in front of him. He was going to make this a spectacular coloring picture. But it wasn't long before his purple crayon smudged the black outline. He tried the other side with a lighter yellow, but you could still see the mistake. His coloring was out of the lines. He tore the page out and started on a new one. He bit his lip, pulled his hair, picked his finger nails, all in frustration, as one-by-one pages were torn from the book. Finally, Johnny got up and complained, “I can't, I can't, I can't!” He hurled the coloring book across the room. “I can't ever get it right!” He began to stomp through the rest of the crayons and kicked the crinkled pages on the floor. With a rush of panic and anger, his mother speed across the cluttered room and whisked him off his feet. She moved him away from the scene of crumbled torn pages. She stood him in the center of the kitchen, gathered her apron in her lap, then she knelt down to look Johnny straight in the face' “All right, just what is the problem, Johnny?" He ran his stubby fingers several times across his scowling forehead and through his brown hair. Each time he grabbed a handful of hair. He would then pull until it slipped through his fingers. Then he would start again. As moments of silence passed, a tear began to roll down his chubby cheeks. “I won't ever learn how to color, Mom. All my pictures look like Katie's scribbling.” He pulled free from his mother's grasp and went to the living room to recover an example. With bent head and a sobbing of tears, he returned to his mother's side. “See, Mom!” Johnny said as he stood on his cowboy tiptoes and stretched his arm as high as he could, so he could get it to her eye level. “See it looks just like a two year old's". “It doesn't either, son,” his mother responded. “That's pretty, it's so colorful Johnny. That is very good for a boy your age.” Johnny grabbed the paper and tore it in two. “It's rotten, Mom". "I don't have time for this Johnny. Maybe you'd better go lie down. Take a time-out in your room.” Johnny did not even argue. “Pick up the crayons, the torn pages and the coloring book,” she added. “Take them to your room, we'll talk later,” she promised. He shuffled to the scene of his tantrum, picked up the torn book, and scattered crayons. Down the long hallway he plodded until he got to his bedroom. He did not turn on the light. He did not even take off his cowboy boots. He just rolled onto the bed with crayons and coloring book held tightly in his hands. Closing his eyes, he started to dream. Before long, he awoke to a strange warm air moving across his face. Slowly he opened his eyes only to see two large nostrils sniffing his face. He bounced from the bed in horror. “What's going on? Who are you? Where am I?” he screamed. “Don't be afraid, Johnny. It is only me, George the Giant Giraffe. You have come to visit my coloring carnival,” explained the large animal, whose nose appeared in Johnny's face. Looking into the huge brown eyes of the animal, Johnny saw the reflection of his shocked and bewildered face.
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
A percentage of young children in today’s world just don’t how to “stick to it.” They want everything easy and handed to them on a silver plate. When it is not, they whine and step away from the activity or the learning experience, and unfortunately, most of them never come back to that situation or encounter again. That is why other countries have surpassed us in the technology race. They are just hungrier for the learning and more persistent in the effort. They don’t let failure turn them away from their effort of learning. The theme of my story is taking a little boy who wants to give up because he thinks he is a failure. He doesn’t want to try anymore because his classmates have made fun of him, and now he is full of self-doubt. Even though his mother offers encouragement and positive support, he rejects it. It is not until he encounters an extraordinary creature and his carnival does his eyes begin to open. The giraffe puts him in situation where he must try repeatedly, even when he wants to give up. Eventually he succeeds and finds out that a “wall of won’t” will never entrap him again; opportunities are found in “plains of possibilities.” This theme is important because it illustrates that young kids can succeed when given alternative motivation. It shows how important it is to follow through on something you have started, even though you believe it doesn’t look so good.
About the Author
I started writing this book twenty-five years ago for my son, when he was a little boy. I have read him this story many times, and now I am reading it to my grandsons. My son helped illustrate the book while he was attending high school. Through this repetition of reading and sharing, I believe that I am qualified to write this book. I am the original storyteller. I can create a story from a simple fact, stretching the truth to the ends of plausibility and still have people believe what I have told them is the absolute truth, all the while leaving them smiling. I am sixty-two years old and have been retired for the last five years. I work in both the aerospace field and the automotive industry. In aerospace, I worked with a team which developed the first rocket motors, which were placed in the Orbiter cargo bay and then launched satellites into geosynchronous to serve as GPS locaters. In the automotive industry, I led a team which developed the first side impact inflator, which lead to car-side airbag modules. Millions have been sold and installed in all makes and models all over the world. In my spare time, I used to run marathons, over 2D5, with a personal best of 2:53. I have also run thirty-five and fifty milers, a number I can’t recall. I also completed two Wasatch hundred mile runs in under thirty hours, but now due to a balance issues plus hearing aids in both ears, and some back problems, I have had to give up running. I live near Ogden, Utah, and numerous ski resorts even though I don’t ski myself. I find that it is too expensive with all the equipment and the lift tickets, but they are the most beautiful mountains in the world and have some of the finest ski resorts. I am a stay-at-home dad who now entertains himself by writing, working with stained glass, and traveling. My wife and I recently returned from a cruise to Antarctica where we saw an assortment of penguins, walrus, and a whale or two. There were days when we even had snow on the decks. We have been in many parts of the Caribbean and Mexico. One of our favorite spots to visit is Aruba. But the most favorite trips are to Maryland to visit my son and his family, especially my two grandsons.