Pencil recommendation: ForestChoice #2 graphite

I'm a pencil fanatic, who sits around reading pencil blogs and meditating on my favorite pencil sharpeners. (Mark once filmed me gushing about the Kum long-point pencil sharpener packaged by the folks at Blackwing.) I buy all the reissued Blackwing pencils, too. I've got it bad.

When it comes to back-to-school pencils for my kids, where you want to buy in quantity, my faves are these ForestChoice ones -- acquirable in big 144-count boxes, enough for an entire school year. I just got this box delivered.

They're lovely pencils -- a smooth and soft lead, with a satiny, almost buttery finish that makes them a joy to write with.

When you buy them in a 144-count box, they're about 26 cents apiece: Much pricier than 10-cents-a-pop Ticondera pencils, but way more than double the quality in writing pleasure.