A fun and feisty tour of big, powerful and fascinating machines; each of them is ready, willing and eager to “go to work.” Low, the author/illustrator of the New York Times Best Illustrated Book Old Penn Station (2007), employs handsome and painterly computer-generated art to move the text along. Pleasingly onomatopoetic effects mimic the machine sounds: “Gzzzzzzzzzk!” or “HONK! HONK!” Exciting two-page spreads pose a question—“Is there an accident ahead?”—and expand with gatefolds to answer it, revealing in turn a back hoe, cement mixer, fire truck, helicopter, mega tow truck, tugboat and container ship at work. In an exciting climax, a double-gatefold opens to reveal a wonderful four-page spread of a freight (“CLICKETY-CLACK, CLICKETY-CLACK, CLICKETY-CLACK...”) train chugging away into the distance as it grows smaller and smaller within a bold expansive landscape. The illustrations have a bright, active and brushy effect, and they incorporate a pleasing palette that is heavy on bold primary colors. Low knows what works for kids who like their machines big and busy. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: May 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-8050-8759-8
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2009
Categories: CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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Sutton’s latest is a truck-lover’s dream come true—repetition, rhyme and onomatopoeia form the text, while construction trucks vie for readers’ attention in the illustrations. The result is a wonderfully noisy look at how roads are built. From a line on a map and an empty field to the finished road complete with lights and signs, youngsters will be able to follow all the steps, learning all the vehicles that take part in the process (a final page introduces readers to each one). “Pack the ground. Pack the ground. / Roll one way, then back. / Make the roadbed good and hard. / Clang! Crunch! Crack!” Lovelock’s debut certainly makes an impression. His pigmented ink illustrations keep the focus on the machines and the individual parts they play in building the road. The level of detail matches the text’s intended audience—enough to satisfy, not so much as to overwhelm. Pave the way to this book’s shelf; perfect for read-alouds, it will be a hit whether shared with a group or one-on-one. (Picture book. 2-5)
Pub Date: July 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3912-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2008
Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION
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Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION
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