Chalk by Bill Thomson

Bill Thomson's wordless picture book, Chalk, is an enchanting flight of fancy for readers of all ages. Three children find a bag of coloured chalk in a playground and the things they draw on the pavement become real. The artwork is hyper-realistic and extremely appealing. I would have guessed that it was computer-generated if not for this note at the back: "Bill Thomson embraced traditional painting techniques and meticulously painted each illustration by hand, using acrylic paint and coloured pencils." Bravo.

Readalikes: Art and Max (or anything else) by David Wiesner and The Garden of Abdul Gasazi (or anything else) by Chris Van Allsburg.