Grumpy Bird is taking flight in Colorado. For the next two weeks, the Centennial State’s annual One Book for Colorado campaign aims to get tomes into the hands of four-year-olds and their parents across the state. Illustrator and author Jeremy Tankard‘s story of a cranky bird was chosen from three finalists. The grumpy bird wakes up in such a bad mood, he can’t fly. Instead, one-by-one, his animal friends join him. Will their company lighten his mood?

“I am delighted to have Grumpy Bird chosen for OB4CO,” Tankard said in the announcement. “I was raised by a librarian so there was never a shortage of books in our house, and my father is a born storyteller so stories were always in abundance. I feel incredibly lucky to have had this growing-up. Knowing that Grumpy Bird will get to be a part of so many households feels like life coming full-circle. It’s humbling to have my book honored in this way.”

According to the 2014 Kids Count study from the Colorado Children’s Campaign, “A growing body of research supports the fact that [literacy] achievement gaps are already present the day children walk in the kindergarten door. The foundation for a child’s literacy and language skills is built during the years prior to kindergarten, and the stability of that foundation depends in part on his or her earliest experiences.” The study cites that kids living in high-income families had heard 30 million more words than children in low-income families by age three, and their vocabularies were twice as large. The One Book for Colorado campaign is blind to income and has presented opportunities for more than 75,000 four-year-olds to get the book.

Story times and book signings with author Jeremy Tankard are scheduled around the state. Find the nearest pickup location here.