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The Numberlys
From the team who brought you The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore comes an alphabet tale extraordinaire!
Once upon a time there was no alphabet, only numbers
Life was fine. Orderly. Dull as gray paint. Very numberly. But our five jaunty heroes weren't willing to accept that this was all there could be. They knew there had to be more.
So they broke out hard hats and welders, hammers and glue guns, and they started knocking some numbers together. Removing a piece here. Adding a piece there. At first, it was awful. But the five kept at it, and soon it was artful! One letter after another emerged, until there were twenty-six. Twenty-six letters - and they were beautiful. All colorful, shiny, and new. Exactly what our heroes didn't even know they were missing.
And when the letters entered the world, something truly wondrous began to happen: Pizza! Jelly beans! Color! Books!
Based on the award-winning app, this is William Joyce and Moonbot's Metropolis-inspired homage to everyone who knows there is more to life than shades of black and gray.
Once upon a time there was no alphabet, only numbers
Life was fine. Orderly. Dull as gray paint. Very numberly. But our five jaunty heroes weren't willing to accept that this was all there could be. They knew there had to be more.
So they broke out hard hats and welders, hammers and glue guns, and they started knocking some numbers together. Removing a piece here. Adding a piece there. At first, it was awful. But the five kept at it, and soon it was artful! One letter after another emerged, until there were twenty-six. Twenty-six letters - and they were beautiful. All colorful, shiny, and new. Exactly what our heroes didn't even know they were missing.
And when the letters entered the world, something truly wondrous began to happen: Pizza! Jelly beans! Color! Books!
Based on the award-winning app, this is William Joyce and Moonbot's Metropolis-inspired homage to everyone who knows there is more to life than shades of black and gray.
50 pages, Hardcover
First published May 27, 2014
8 people are currently reading
417 people want to read
About the author
William Joyce
171 books1,475 followersWilliam Joyce does a lot of stuff—films, apps, Olympic curling—but children’s books are his true bailiwick (The Numberlys, The Man in the Moon, Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King, Toothiana, and the #1 New York Times bestselling The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, which is also an Academy Award–winning short film, to name a few). He lives with his family in Shreveport, Louisiana.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 211 reviews
March 2, 2019
William Joyce has a vision that is so grand in scope. This book is singular. It’s an easy beginner book and it’s really playing with the basic building blocks. There is a society that is very mechanic and industrial. It’s pretty dull and repetitious and full of only numbers and gruel. A group of 5 friends decide there should be something new. The come up with the ABCs.
Something I haven’t seen is that he has a long book that he pants the book on the side so you have to read the story top to bottom with very long pages so you can really see the scope of the buildings and world these Numberlys are in.
This is fantastic and amazing and I won’t say anymore about what is in it. You really need to check this out and see for yourself. It’s such a lovely surprise and visually stunning. This is a work of art and even though it’s for a young audience, the kids loved this book. They were wowed by it. They both gave it a resounding 5 stars. Both kids were amazed and wanted to read it again. It was an experience for them. William is a wunderkind. I think he has some amazing work being done at the moment.
Something I haven’t seen is that he has a long book that he pants the book on the side so you have to read the story top to bottom with very long pages so you can really see the scope of the buildings and world these Numberlys are in.
This is fantastic and amazing and I won’t say anymore about what is in it. You really need to check this out and see for yourself. It’s such a lovely surprise and visually stunning. This is a work of art and even though it’s for a young audience, the kids loved this book. They were wowed by it. They both gave it a resounding 5 stars. Both kids were amazed and wanted to read it again. It was an experience for them. William is a wunderkind. I think he has some amazing work being done at the moment.
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June 15, 2014Look, I think this is a pretty book with great illustrations and the story it tells is pretty decent, but I can't help but be upset by the whole thing. This entire book is about how the fact that numbers are BORING and we need LETTERS AND WORDS to bring magic into our lives and I just think that's totally unnecessary. We already have those books, we read those books all the time. There need to be more books about the enjoyment and the excitement of numbers because mathematics is not promoted or taught remotely well and here's another book that says math is BORING and words are LIFE. It's not like because I took calculus I am a gray world with no color until I start reading books or even that those two worlds are separated from each other. I mean seriously, what the hell. I know my opinion is biased because of my feelings on the subject and therefore I will reserve the stars, but it's still upsetting to me. We need more books that promote the integration of both words and numbers.
May 26, 2014
I love William Joyce's retro style of art illustration. His pictures tell such great stories, he is one of the few authors that can convey a story that way. The book goes from black and white to color and it is fun. The book starts out with only numbers in the world and the world is gray, lifeless and dull. When The Numberlys decide that things should change, they set out to do something about it. So, they create Letters. Boom, the world comes colorfully to life.
This is a fun book showing the value of numbers and letters in learning. Makes a great coffee table book as well. Children and adults will get a kick out of this one.
This is a fun book showing the value of numbers and letters in learning. Makes a great coffee table book as well. Children and adults will get a kick out of this one.
November 13, 2019
In a gray world organised solely by numbers, five Numberly friends decide to rebel and to create something new. Their efforts lead to the dawn of the alphabet, whose constituent letters spell so many things - from bright colors like yellow to pleasing foods like pizza - previously missing from the world...
The Numberlys is a creative story that looks at both numbers and letters, and it is also a gorgeously illustrated book. The artwork, whether sepia-toned, as it is in the beginning, or vibrantly colorful, as it is at the end, is simply gorgeous, while the page orientation, which alternates between vertical and horizontal, is inventive. All that said, I tend to agree with those online reviewers who have been a little dismayed at the cliched idea, expressed through the story here, that numbers (and by extension, mathematics) is boring, and letters (and by extension, language) is interesting and creative. It might surprise some to know that once upon a time music and mathematics were taught together, and were considered interrelated subjects. They might also want to consider that letters only go to make up our descriptions of things, and that the things themselves are actually created from chemicals, chemicals whose composition could be described equally well with numbers, as with letters.
While it may not have been the creator's intent - some have even made the counter-argument that the letters here are made out of the numbers, thus linking them - I do feel that he fell into the trap of thinking of numbers and letters as somehow oppositional. This is one Joyce title I recommend primarily for the gorgeous artwork, rather than the concept or story.
The Numberlys is a creative story that looks at both numbers and letters, and it is also a gorgeously illustrated book. The artwork, whether sepia-toned, as it is in the beginning, or vibrantly colorful, as it is at the end, is simply gorgeous, while the page orientation, which alternates between vertical and horizontal, is inventive. All that said, I tend to agree with those online reviewers who have been a little dismayed at the cliched idea, expressed through the story here, that numbers (and by extension, mathematics) is boring, and letters (and by extension, language) is interesting and creative. It might surprise some to know that once upon a time music and mathematics were taught together, and were considered interrelated subjects. They might also want to consider that letters only go to make up our descriptions of things, and that the things themselves are actually created from chemicals, chemicals whose composition could be described equally well with numbers, as with letters.
While it may not have been the creator's intent - some have even made the counter-argument that the letters here are made out of the numbers, thus linking them - I do feel that he fell into the trap of thinking of numbers and letters as somehow oppositional. This is one Joyce title I recommend primarily for the gorgeous artwork, rather than the concept or story.
July 22, 2014
In a world where there are only numbers, everything is very orderly and neat. But it’s also very gray, even the food. Then five friends started to wonder if there was something more than numbers, something different! So they started inventing and they slowly came up with letters. And when they reached the final letter Z, things started to change. Color entered their dreary lives as the letters fell into place. Once the letters formed words, real changes started and the entire world was flooded with color and yummy foods and possibilities.
Based on the app, this is a second picture book from the creators of The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, which also started as an app. Joyce creates a numeric and order-filled world reminiscent of Orwell’s 1984 in the first pages of the book. The text here is very simple, allowing most of the storytelling to be done by the illustrations. Joyce keeps a light hand here and uses humor to show how dark the world is. Who could imagine a world without jellybeans?
It is Ellis’ art that brings this world to life. Her orderly world has the feel of wooden toy soldiers and the five friends are wonderfully different and unique even before they invent the alphabet. The gray tones of the early part of the book give way to jellybean colors that jump on the page.
This celebration of words and books also examines the importance of independent thought and creativity. Appropriate for ages 4-6.
Based on the app, this is a second picture book from the creators of The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, which also started as an app. Joyce creates a numeric and order-filled world reminiscent of Orwell’s 1984 in the first pages of the book. The text here is very simple, allowing most of the storytelling to be done by the illustrations. Joyce keeps a light hand here and uses humor to show how dark the world is. Who could imagine a world without jellybeans?
It is Ellis’ art that brings this world to life. Her orderly world has the feel of wooden toy soldiers and the five friends are wonderfully different and unique even before they invent the alphabet. The gray tones of the early part of the book give way to jellybean colors that jump on the page.
This celebration of words and books also examines the importance of independent thought and creativity. Appropriate for ages 4-6.
January 4, 2015
I thought this was spectacularly boring. There's very little story to it, to be honest, and no character(s) to connect to or root for. The characters, such as they are, are merely there. The illustrations are cute but not enough so to really make a difference, enjoyment wise. And compared to The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, it was a major letdown.
July 22, 2016
NOTE: Possible spoilers, but c'mon, it's a picture book.
Maybe I'm in a foul mood today or something, but I was soooo disappointed! This book looked adorable and the illustrations are really great, but the story fell flat. "They did something. They were tired, but happy. The end." WHAT?!?
Maybe I'm in a foul mood today or something, but I was soooo disappointed! This book looked adorable and the illustrations are really great, but the story fell flat. "They did something. They were tired, but happy. The end." WHAT?!?
August 29, 2014
Joyce is pretty much an automatic love for me. This one has a clear plastic dustjacket with the black and white numbers on it and a special surprise underneath. Gorgeous. The story concept is good, but really, this is just awesome art. I do not at all mind that he has a study full of newcomers learning from him. Not when the quality is this high.
Library copy
Library copy
December 20, 2015
The art is 5 stars, but the story is 1 star! As an English major, who loves art of all sorts, I see the (beautiful, many) shades of grey in a world without colors or language....but come on! A written language is wonderful, but the message here that numbers are not amazing and varied and INFINITELY beautiful is one gazillion percent erroneous.
October 18, 2016
I adored this book. The words and illustrations work together to show what happens when a group of people - who live in a world where there are only numbers and no alphabet - decide to make a change. It's a simple story, but beautifully captured the heart of why words are so wonderful, and what they can do to change the world around us.
May 30, 2014
Oh! So that's how letters came about!
February 2, 2015
Fantastic! Loved the illustrations, loved the story. It almost felt a little dystopian with the sepia tones and generic masses of moon men marching around with their numbers. Unique, brilliant, fun.
June 30, 2014
Fantastic illustrations. The beginning got my attention "Once upon a time there was no alphabet. Only numbers." Which made me say nooooooo. Good for teaching kids to think differently.
June 29, 2014
A very uniquely laid out storybook with a fun story telling how the alphabet came about.
December 2, 2015
My student brought this book to me and said, "You have to read this!"
December 21, 2015
Math might rule, but words tell feelings. Beautifully illustrated children's book!
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October 14, 2018Gorgeous illustrations in this book about numbers in a numbers-only world, who go looking for something different and invent the alphabet. The kids enjoyed this book, especially the illustrations, which are very elaborate. It's good to show the alphabet. However, if you want to get kids excited about math, this isn't the right book.
April 29, 2018
You can argue until the sun burns out about whether math is boring or not, and whether or not this is the message of the book. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions. As much as I love science and math (my degree from my pre-library life is biology/geology), I do think that you need words as well to really describe sometime - numbers can only take you so far in that realm of things. I liked how the numbers had created the giant structures and impressive systems of the Numberly world - it wasn't an empty world. The little Numberlys didn't destroy that; they just wanted to add something more. I also liked how the letters were built from numbers - how the two intertwine, if you want to continue reading tons of meaning into your picture books.
The story is indeed a bit simple, especially compared to some of Joyce's other works. There aren't really Characters either - just 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, and even they aren't actually named in the story text. However, the illustrations are beautiful. The layouts give it some visual interest too. And it is an alphabet book (despite the title). Many alphabet books do sacrifice plot to include all the letters.
Would I use it in a storytime? Possibly with an alphabet theme. I like the interesting layout, and the colors make the letters easy for the kids to follow. But with so many little details in the pictures, this might be a better one-on-one read.
The story is indeed a bit simple, especially compared to some of Joyce's other works. There aren't really Characters either - just 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, and even they aren't actually named in the story text. However, the illustrations are beautiful. The layouts give it some visual interest too. And it is an alphabet book (despite the title). Many alphabet books do sacrifice plot to include all the letters.
Would I use it in a storytime? Possibly with an alphabet theme. I like the interesting layout, and the colors make the letters easy for the kids to follow. But with so many little details in the pictures, this might be a better one-on-one read.
November 8, 2014
Numbers and mathematics are at the heart of what our children will need to succeed in the times to come, and math ideas are beautiful and plentiful and ever growing and evolving. The dull dreary world that the authors say is so awful that it is "numberly" does not reflect the beauty that is central to mathematics.
Unfortunately many Americans, parents of children and teachers, believe that math is dull and too hard to be worth the time. This book exacerbating a problem so great, teachers must combat it at every level of our children's education, up to and including college, in order to even begin to teach. I am stunned that these authors and illustrators of picture books, from a profession that holds constant, eloquent discourse on the use of diversity to help society break harmful stereotypes, can be apparently unaware of the dire need to refocus society's attitudes and beliefs toward STEM and mathematics in particular. I am also horrified that it is a beautiful book, by an illustrator (animator) I have long admired.
Work toward change, do math for fun, do math with your kids. Then it will rain jellybeans for you too. #LetsDoMath
Unfortunately many Americans, parents of children and teachers, believe that math is dull and too hard to be worth the time. This book exacerbating a problem so great, teachers must combat it at every level of our children's education, up to and including college, in order to even begin to teach. I am stunned that these authors and illustrators of picture books, from a profession that holds constant, eloquent discourse on the use of diversity to help society break harmful stereotypes, can be apparently unaware of the dire need to refocus society's attitudes and beliefs toward STEM and mathematics in particular. I am also horrified that it is a beautiful book, by an illustrator (animator) I have long admired.
Work toward change, do math for fun, do math with your kids. Then it will rain jellybeans for you too. #LetsDoMath
September 24, 2018
The illustrations are really what sells this book. My son and I could look at them for hours. The writing style is ok, but there is a problem with the premise. My son especially loves the book because he is obsessed with building and gears and creating worlds like the ones shown in the illustrations, and he is in Math Club because that is where they build and design things, but the book is saying that numbers are just gray gloop compared to words which are jellybeans. It led to a few awkward questions and discussions with my son, who by the way also loves words. It was disappointing because each page is so wonderfully illustrated I want to frame each and hang it on the wall. I would recommend people get the book so you can pour over the awesome illustrations but just make up your own story when you 'read' it to your kids.
November 28, 2018
The Numberlys is about a group of children who use invention and writing to make their boring, strict, identical world more diverse. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! The illustrations were fun and engaging. William Joyce uses a lot of symbolism with color both on the cover and throughout the pages. Perhaps one of my favorite details is that the inside cover in the front and in the back are different and actually work as part of the story, which most books do not do. This book deals with many different concepts such as numbers, counting, the alphabet, words, the power of writing, and diversity of thought. This book is a pleasure to read and I highly recommend it for children and adults alike.
November 14, 2018
Cute book about how the alphabet came to be. This book features a dust jacket making it very unique. It also switches the page layout from landscape to vertical allowing for practice of proper book positioning to follow the written portion. As the story develops the illustrations appear in color connecting the alphabet to a more happy place to be in. There are no words in some pages which encourages imagination because children have to put a meaning to what's going on in the story this is an indicator of success for young readers.
July 24, 2017
I didn't care for this book. The illustrations, while stylish, weren't always clear in accordance with the story. It's always nice to have an original story concept to introduce the alphabet or other basic knowledge to children, but I don't think the story was put together very well. And as others have mentioned it did give a poor image to numbers, which eventually turns into math, something that is already dreaded and hated without the aid of books like this at an early age.
October 28, 2017
Imagine a place with only numbers. No colors, no books or pizza and jellybeans. Could there be room for something more? Five friends believe there is and strike out to answer the question. They start crunching the numbers and a wonderful thing happens.
This is a quick, happy book. Great for kids just learning numbers and the alphabet. The illustrations are clean and classic. The only drawback is it ends too soon.
This is a quick, happy book. Great for kids just learning numbers and the alphabet. The illustrations are clean and classic. The only drawback is it ends too soon.
October 13, 2017
This book is about a group of people called the Numberlys. They live in a world of numbers, and numbers only. There is no color, no emotion, no feeling. But five friends have an idea and they start creating something amazing.
The illustrations are mesmerizing. The use of colors perfectly matches the story.
The illustrations are mesmerizing. The use of colors perfectly matches the story.
October 2, 2018
My son has a deep, abiding love for both mathematics and reading. The Numberlys was an instant hit! He loves picking apart the detailed illustrations, such as the fact that the main characters' hairstyles divide their hair into as many "parts" as their number. Numbers are incredible, useful, and beautiful... but there are some things they just can't express in the same way as language.
August 16, 2018
I love books that you have to turn to get the right view. This one is a VERY tall book and is about an imaginary place where there are only numbers. There are a number of wordless pages too, which always makes for an interesting read aloud discussion.
Everything is perfect and orderly. They invent letters and then words and what a world it is!
Everything is perfect and orderly. They invent letters and then words and what a world it is!
November 5, 2018
Once upon a time there were only numbers in the world, and it was orderly. A world void of color, jellybeans, alphabet and no names. Five friends thought there must be more, and so they decided to find out and make it happen. After trial and error, the five friends brought forth something new for all to see, and enjoy.
June 28, 2017
I really liked the illustrations in this book Very artfully done! The story line was ok but still good. My kids really like it because it was the "Numberlys" making letters. They thought in the next book they could meet the Letterlys.
May 21, 2018
Love the illustrations. Felt like I was watching a Pixar film! It isn't common that the book is read vertically but this was done to frame the scenes with more emphasis on height than panoramic view.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 211 reviews