In David Wiesner’s wordless picturebook Tuesday, vibrant greens and bright yellows provide a striking contrast against the cool and subdued blue night. The contrast of the color between the flying frogs/dogs and the calmness of the night creates a surreal picture that continues throughout the book.

In the spread from pages twenty-one and twenty-two, frogs made out of shades of green are riding on lily pads through a neighborhood, and a dog is seemingly running from them. The images take up the entire page save for the white frame present throughout the book.

The stark green shades of the frogs stand out against the blue and serene neighborhood. The reader’s eye is automatically drawn to the frog closest to the reader as it is larger than the rest. It stands out against the rest of the frogs because of its unique markings and size. Every single frog is different, and yet they all share a similar color scheme of green and brown. The reader’s eyes are then captivated by playful expressions and the bright yellow color of the dog. The shift in color on the dog’s snape implies movement as it represents the glare of the moon. The color presents feelings of wonder and surrealness as the idea of frogs and dogs flying is absurd. Wiesner is able to accomplish all this without words.

While Wiesner has said that the wordless picturebook is a “play activity with no rules and no expected outcome—studies have shown that wordless picture books form a kind of free reading play that provides endless possibility” (Saxon), the use of surreal color in Tuesday evokes endless possibilities as well.

Word Count: 274