Newcomer Sayres hits plenty of sweet notes with this tribute to the trucks of our world, singing them off to sleep in...
Another good old truck book; they never come amiss.
Newcomer Sayres hits plenty of sweet notes with this tribute to the trucks of our world, singing them off to sleep in comforting couplets. “Where do diggers sleep at night? / Do they dream of holes they dug?” Children's identification with these beasts of the road and worksite is swift and complete. Dump trucks, fire trucks, car transporters, garbage trucks: “Where do garbage trucks sleep / when they’re done collecting trash? / Do their dads sniff their load and say, / ‘Pee-yew—time to take a bath’?” So there is a touch of low comedy, too, as well as the kind of inclusive generosity that welcomes monster trucks into their midst. Plus a natty tongue-twister to hurry along those nodding off to sleep: “Do their flashing fire-red beacons / make for super-bright night-lights?” Slade’s artwork is dessert rich, with great soupy smiles and droopy eyes, backdrops of small towns here and small cities there, all under blueberry-stained night skies. For all the heavy lifting, this book works well as a lullaby, the illustrations shifting neatly, if predictably, at the end to a little boy’s room and its bevy of toy trucks.Pub Date: May 22, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-375-86848-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Feb. 4, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A glory ride for young car, truck, train, bus and trolley devotees.
In a visual feast for fans of wheeled vehicles large and small, Biggs presents a series of high-density street scenes done in an amiably rumpled cartoon style.
Driving in from the ’burbs to a generic metropolis, a lad and his dad gloss each big, double-page spread—“ ‘Do trucks work the same way as cars?’ / ‘Many of them do. Trucks also have jobs, like cars’ ”—as they glide through heavy traffic, past a construction site and under an elevated highway. They wait for fleets of bikes and motorcycles to pass and park at last near a train station to pick up Mom. Along with sparely labeled close-up or cutaway views of a car, a bicycle, a big truck, a subway station, an RV and other specimens, the author sets up the family reunion at the end with a giant double-gatefold aerial view of an entire neighborhood packed with traffic, pedestrians, local businesses and signs, each one individually distinct. Jokey side conversations (one firefighter tells another, "There's no fire. It's just a cat"; his companion asks, "Should we get some milk?") play off more serious and informative dialogue. A diagram of a car is accompanied by a disquisition on the relationship between a car battery and the motor, as well as the fact that "[a]n electric car uses batteries and electric motor. No gas!"
A glory ride for young car, truck, train, bus and trolley devotees. (Informational picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-195809-0
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A wacky roadway of discovery awaits readers in Stein and Staake’s affectionate tribute to the automobile and its infinite design possibilities. With Seusslike rhymes and silliness, they create a world of diverse vehicles, each an extension of its owner and an expression of individuality. Comical cars zoom by with playful text in tow: “Rusty, dusty, / hunk-of-junk car. / Stinky, yucky, / smells-like-a-skunk car.” Staake anchors most illustrations with a black, energetic roadway full of merges, curves, loops and angles. Each spread contains an intriguing pattern, offering new objects for discovery with each turn of the page. Auto-lovers will adore his whimsical illustrations—done in a ’50s modern design aesthetic—of tractors, tow trucks, race and rocket cars, and all will find humor in his expressive characters. His sense of fun extends beyond fanciful car designs; readers will love spotting the occasional alligator, giraffe or rhino behind the wheel. The eminently chantable text will likely make this a fast favorite with lovers of things that go, so be ready for many round trips. One bright and lively ride. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7636-4743-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Feb. 10, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2011
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