Otto's Orange Day by Jay Lynch

Bibliography
Lynch, Jay. 2008. Otto's Orange Day. ill. Frank Cammuso. New York: RAW Junior, LLC.

Plot Summary
Otto is a cat and his favorite color is orange. He thinks the color is pretty, bold, strong, and even created a song about all of the orange things that he likes. After receiving a genie lamp from his Aunt Sally, he asks the genie for his one wish which was to make everything orange! At first, he loved the results but soon realized how boring and confusing life was when it was all the same color.

Critical Summary
Author, Jay Lynch, and illustrator, Frank Cammuso, team up to create the toon book, Otto's Orange Day. When Otto the cat receives a genie lamp as a gift from his aunt Sally, he redeems his one wish and asks that everything is turned orange which is his favorite color. He was so excited when he saw that his wish came true...orange planes, orange bats, orange cars, and even orange snow. His excitement quickly changed when his mother served him an orange lamb chop, orange spinach, orange mashed potatoes, and orange milk for lunch. It was not great to have everything orange but how was he going to return everything to normal since he already used his one wish!

Lynch's simple writing makes this a great introduction to graphic novels. The flow and the rhyming of the text is a perfect combination and lends itself well to being read aloud. Cammuso's illustrations are a wonderful addition to the story. It is easy to get caught up Otto's excitement over the color orange. Children will want to hear and see this one over and over again!

Reviews
Children's Literature: " The story ends well and Otto learns a very valuable lesson. The illustrations are awesome; the writing has rhythm and is fun to read aloud. It is a book that is perfect for both boys and girls and is a great introduction to a chapter book (It has two chapters). This is a must own book for young readers."

Kirkus Reviews: "Cammuso illustrates comics veteran Lynch's tale in neatly drawn sequential panels, casting Otto as a cat (marmalade, of course) in human dress and pairing him with a blue, distinctly Disneyesque genie. Low on violence and high on production values, this comics-format "Toon Book" will leave emergent readers wishing for more."