An eclectic presentation of roadside sights and a good basic guide to the American West.
Murray’s debut, this ABC book takes upper elementary readers on an alphabetical journey across the American West along iconic Route 66.
Opening with a regional U.S. map that shows the winding path of Route 66 across eight states, from Illinois to California, Murray’s picture book takes readers on an alphabetical journey as much as a geographic tour. The author uses mostly sentence fragments, featuring words beginning with a certain letter to outline specific locations encountered on the famous highway. For example, G includes the cities “Galena” and “Glendora,” the “Gemini Giant” and the “Gateway Arch” landmarks, and the more common sights of “Gila monsters” and “gift shops.” Not every letter has attractions conveniently assigned to it, and sometimes Murray must give a more general description: “N is for National Parks. Neon signs illuminating the Night sky.” Cole’s hand-drawn illustrations and watercolor pictures are superimposed on maps and feature a black-and-white road stretching across every two-page spread. The book is a celebration of this famous stretch of American highway. Though Murray includes a list indicating where some of the landmarks are, others remain a mystery, such as a trio of sauropod dinosaurs depicted next to a sign reading “Rock Shop” on the L page. Oddly, no historical context is given for Route 66 itself—and no mention of its relationship to Native American history—but readers may be compelled to learn more.
An eclectic presentation of roadside sights and a good basic guide to the American West.Pub Date: April 10, 2022
ISBN: 9781639881956
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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Quirky, familiar fun for series devotees.
After Duncan finds his crayons gone—yet again—letters arrive, detailing their adventures in friendship.
Eleven crayons send missives from their chosen spots throughout Duncan’s home (and one from his classroom). Red enjoys the thrill of extinguishing “pretend fires” with Duncan’s toy firetruck. White, so often dismissed as invisible, finds a new calling subbing in for the missing queen on the black-and-white chessboard. “Now everyone ALWAYS SEES ME!…(Well, half the time!)” Pink’s living the dream as a pastry chef helming the Breezy Bake Oven, “baking everything from little cupcakes…to…OTHER little cupcakes!” Teal, who’s hitched a ride to school in Duncan’s backpack, meets the crayons in the boy’s desk and writes, “Guess what? I HAVE A TWIN! How come you never told me?” Duncan wants to see his crayons and “meet their new friends.” A culminating dinner party assembles the crayons and their many guests: a table tennis ball, dog biscuits, a well-loved teddy bear, and more. The premise—personified crayons, away and back again—is well-trammeled territory by now, after over a dozen books and spinoffs, and Jeffers once more delivers his signature cartooning and hand-lettering. Though the pages lack the laugh-out-loud sight gags and side-splittingly funny asides of previous outings, readers—especially fans of the crayons’ previous outings—will enjoy checking in on their pals.
Quirky, familiar fun for series devotees. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 3, 2025
ISBN: 9780593622360
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2025
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