Tag Archives: I read this as a kid

Long ago there were no colors in the world at all.
Almost everything was grey,
and what was not grey was black or white.
It was a time that was called The Great Greyness.

Every morning a Wizard who lived
during the time of The Great Greyness
would open his window to look out at the wide land.
“Something is very wrong with the world,” he would say.
“It is hard to tell when the rainy days stop
and the sunny days begin.”

When the dissatisfied Wizard eventually makes a color (blue), everyone is thrilled. They paint everything blue and The Great Blueness begins. But soon people begin to grow sad. So the Wizard tries again. And again. And again. Until, “[a]t last, the world was too beautiful ever to be changed again.”

This is a fun story with beautiful pictures. It subtly teaches about primary and secondary colors (like The Color Kittens). It also demonstrates the perils of too much of a good thing (like Bread and Jam for Frances).

Author: Arnold Lobel
Illustrator: Arnold Lobel