SLOW TRAIN TO OXMOX

by Kurt Cyrus ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1998

When Edwin Blink misses the fast train to Oxmox he's forced to take the slow train instead. Never has Edwin experienced a ride as pokey as this one. When geese cross the track, the whole train stops, allowing the passengers to lift the track so the birds can pass underneath. Just as the train begins to build steam, it plows into a huge gloppy mud puddle. Each further delay sends Blink into an anxious tirade, but a loop-de-loop through Twigtwist and an aquatic plunge in Dip Creek eventually convince him to pitch right in and put his skills as a mechanical engineer to good use. At the book's end, Oxmox is still down the tracks a piece, but Blink had finally learned to go with the flow. Cyrus (Tangle Town, 1997) wonderfully conveys the difficulties the train encounters; his lines and color revel in the dents of the train, a tangle of twigs, and lumpy chocolate muck. The plot is a little more Zen-like than his last frenetic book, but like the train ride itself, offers plenty to mull over en route to the ending.

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1998

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 32

Publisher: "Farrar, Straus & Giroux"

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1998

Categories: CHILDREN'S