by Cornelius Van Wright ; illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2020
Dead certain to instill a newfound and deep-seated crane obsession in its young readers.
Cranes of every shape and size enjoy the limelight.
Dex is just a small mini, or spider, crane, best suited to interior work. Still, when a letter comes inviting his operator, Pete, to help with an “incredibly BIG project,” the two hop to it. To get there, they must journey over land and across the sea, passing myriad different cranes on the way. Passing a relatively human-scale loader crane and telescopic crane, the truck carrying Dex reaches the waterfront and is loaded onto a ship, allowing him to encounter jaw-droppingly massive shipbuilding, ship-to-shore, offshore, floating, and tower cranes. In the face of the sheer gargantuan size of their mechanics, Dex is baffled as to why he was selected for any kind of important job. Happily, his merit is made clear when he unloads and lifts the different parts of a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton within a museum. While each crane Dex comes into contact with exhibits anthropomorphic features (eyes, faces, etc.), this does not detract from the awe they will inspire in construction-obsessed young readers. Deft watercolors bring the sheer scale of this storyline to life, with sweet-faced Dex the friendliest little red spider crane you ever did see. Alas, but one crane is gendered female, offsetting only slightly the otherwise male-heavy cast.
Dead certain to instill a newfound and deep-seated crane obsession in its young readers. (further information) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-59572-843-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Starbright Books
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
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by Sindiwe Magona & Ellen Mayer ; illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright
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by Cornelius Van Wright ; illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright
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by John Cena ; illustrated by Howard McWilliam ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 8, 2019
Engines won’t be the only thing roaring their approval when this book hits storytime.
Who needs sanity when you’ve got family?
The title character of Elbow Grease (2018) and his family of Demolition Derby trucks return to face an all-new competitor. Once again, ’Bo is feeling inadequate next to his fan-favorite brothers. Despite Mel the Mechanic’s encouragement—he’s “the best at getting better”—he wants to be noticed. But instead, he notices someone unavoidable. Motozilla, the monster machine that turns trucks “into crunch sandwiches,” is currently undefeated. Trouble is, you’d need a truck with an array of skills to take him down. Thinking fast, ’Bo makes the wild and somewhat improbable suggestion that he and his brothers join together to form a single supertruck. Will it be enough to take down this bully? Quips, jests, and teamwork are the name of the game as pro wrestler Cena improves on his writing in this second outing, which demonstrates that individual glory falls in the face of concentrated cooperation. Rollicking, radical art portrays the battle in all its gritty glory, mud and twisted metal galore. Human crowds show a diverse range of races and genders, and the trucks’ keeper, Mel, has light-brown skin and wears glasses.
Engines won’t be the only thing roaring their approval when this book hits storytime. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5247-7353-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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by John Cena ; illustrated by Howard McWilliam
by Candace Fleming ; illustrated by Eric Rohmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 21, 2021
Extremely simple and rather sweet.
Bulldozer is worried about what to give his friends for Christmas.
On Christmas Eve, Dump Truck is carrying, Digger Truck is stringing, and Crane Truck is lifting—all in service of decorating for Christmas. But Bulldozer is on the side, surrounded by cats, worrying. He has not a single gift for his friends. What can he do? He sees a tire half buried in the snow and wonders what other treasures might be there. He starts to dig, and he hits something…but it turns out to be junk. He keeps on digging and finds something else: “more junk.” He keeps digging and digging. The piles grow larger, the sky gets darker, and Bulldozer’s hope fades. But then he thinks he sees something through the snow. He pokes the pile of junk this way and that. He adds bits and pieces. As his friends call out to him that it’s quitting time, Bulldozer puts last touches on his gift. He moves aside to reveal his creation to his friends, and all are pleased with the gift. The little yellow Bulldozer with his entourage of animal friends is a likable character whose plight children will relate to and whose noncommercial solution is a model for creative youngsters to take as inspiration. Best for wrapping a message of giving within a truck-loving package full of sound effects. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Extremely simple and rather sweet. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 21, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3820-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Caitlyn Dlouhy/Atheneum
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2021
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by Candace Fleming ; illustrated by Eric Rohmann
BOOK REVIEW
by Candace Fleming ; illustrated by Eric Rohmann
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