In the spirit of Harold and the Purple Crayon, Journey reveals the adventures bored children can have when in possession of a powerful writing tool. Our urban protagonist, a young girl, fails to find a playmate within her household and then uses her magic chalk to bust out of the house and into a world of canal-filled castles, airships, deserts, and a mysterious purple bird in need of rescue. All along the way, the girl uses her red chalk to create items she needs for her journey. The story is told without any text, and the pages with her drawing pictures provide a great opportunity to ask children what they think she's making and what she plans to do with that. 
 I had originally read Quest (the second book in the series) after seeing it nominated for the Goodreads Choice Awards 2014 for Best Children's Book. While that book stood alone, it did leave me wondering what was with the bird companion and how the story had started. Journey answered those questions!