This triumphant wordless picture book reunites the girl with the red crayon, the boy with the purple crayon and the majestic purple bird from Aaron Becker's debut, Journey (a 2014 Caldecott Honor book).
As the two children take refuge from a rainstorm under a stone bridge in a city park, a king emerges from a set of double doors and thrusts a document into the boy's hands. The monarch, seized by soldiers and pulled back through the doorway, tosses an orange crayon that matches his crown and robe. The girl fetches the crayon and places it in her toolbelt. Girl and boy each draw a key that unlocks one of the double doors, and their adventure begins. Becker draws readers back into the world of Journey, where the king is held captive on a giant boat. The young heroes examine the king's document: a map with a half-dozen landmarks connected by a rainbow of different colors, foreshadowing the scavenger hunt to follow. For their first destination, an underwater ruin, the boy draws a purple squid (on which they hitch a ride), and the girl sketches red fins and oxygen tanks (one for the bird, too). A turn of the page reveals an Atlantis-like city glowing in golden light. Each destination yields another crayon color, as they narrowly escape the king's oppressors.
Becker's smaller vignettes quicken the pace, while his full-spread images reward close attention. In the final harrowing escape, the purple bird plays a key role and lights up the sky. Fans will eagerly anticipate the final installment. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness