In my opinion this was a story that many students could relate to. The plot followed the character, Ike, as he figured out how to create the ink that he needed to help him write a story. It was well organized; the conflict was clear and it was easy to follow the character through his process of solving the problem he faced. I feel as though there are many students that have run into the same problem that Ike has with not knowing what to write about when they are assigned a writing assignment. By the end of the book you realize that Ike decides to write his book on how he got his ink. When students are stuck they can learn from this book that life experience make for an easy writing topic. Whenever you can relate a writing prompt to something that has happened in your life; it makes the writing that much easier to write as well as more interesting to read. I also enjoyed the way the book was illustrated. The story was about ink so all the illustrations reflected that theme as well with the drawings looking like they were all done in ink as well. Some are simple and some are a little more elaborate but i think that reflected how versatile ink can be. This versatility is also seen in the color choices that was used. Some objects are a solid color while other are patterned with elaborate designs. It is easy to see how much thought and careful planning went into the illustrations. ( )

Ah, procrastination. I can so relate. ( )

Ike thinks that he needs incredible ink because when he sits down to write his story, he can't think of anything to write. As he sallies forth on the adventure to create the ink, all kinds of interesting things happen, so now he does indeed have something to write about. This shares an interesting perspective on the artistic process. Couple with Emma's Rug by Allen Say and let kids think about whether the protagonist's are on the right track as they think that their muse rests somewhere that it really doesn't. ( )

One of the professional reviews called this book quirky and the word surely fits, in a completely positive sense. It is also quite an imaginative take on procrastination, a quality I know something about. ( )

Nice story about creativity, with some excellently inky illustrations. ( )