A stirring defense of a child’s right to like—and read—what they like.
A boy’s love of tractors knows no bounds.
Little, bespectacled Frankie McGee proudly informs readers in rhyming verse that instead of the park, Frankie and Mom are bound for the library, which is presided over by blue-haired Miss Squid. To Mom’s chagrin, Frankie has eyes only for yet another tractor book, and her child is only too happy to enumerate their charms. As Frankie does, Løvlie presents drivers in a diverse range of races and genders, all gunning their tractors through mud or up steep hills. When Mom tries diverting Frankie’s attention to alternative modes of transportation, Frankie is uninterested. Her protestations are quashed by Miss Squid, who assures Frankie, “Well, you know yourself best. / When you want something different, just come and find me. / A kid who likes books is a nice thing to see.” As Frankie tells Mom, “I like books—that’s what matters. Not what they’re about.” Caregivers of similarly tunnel-visioned offspring will identify closely with Mom’s objections to more of the same, and those children will be happy to receive Miss Squid’s support. For fellow tractor lovers, Frankie’s systematic explanation of everything from their interchangeable parts to their brands will legitimize their love. Løvlie’s art exemplifies a halcyon world of tractors coupled with an idyllic children’s library filled with nooks, bright light, and a loving librarian. Characters present White. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9.5-by-19-inch double-page spreads viewed at 33.5% of actual size.)
A stirring defense of a child’s right to like—and read—what they like. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-301918-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Should appeal to all the little grump trucks hauling their feelings about.
When dump trucks get angry (really, really angry), head for the hills!
Little Dump Truck is “the happiest member of the construction crew.” Assisting everyone from Excavator to Bulldozer, she hauls her load merrily. But sometimes things just don’t go her way. In rapid succession, dirt is blown in her face, a tire is punctured, and a flock of birds mistake her for a lavatory. Now she’s Little Grump Truck, and the exceedingly poor advice from her co-workers (“Ignore it. You’ll be fine”; “Shake it off!”) pushes her too far. After Little Grump Truck unloads (figuratively and literally) on her colleagues, everyone else has the “grumpies” too. It isn’t until she closes her eyes and focuses that Little Dump Truck is able to clear her mind and lighten her mood. Apologies are in order, and soon everything is humming (for the time being, anyway). Though the narrative doesn’t drill the message home, both child and adult readers alike will hopefully pick up on the fact that pithy aphorisms are maddeningly unhelpful when one is in a bad mood. Gray skies accompany the dump truck’s mood, which is depicted as an ever morphing agglomeration of hard, black scribbles. The accompanying art serves its purpose, investing its trucks with personality via time-honored headlight, windshield-wiper, and grille facial features. Little Dump Truck has a purple cab and green bed and a single lash on each headlight eye. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Should appeal to all the little grump trucks hauling their feelings about. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-30081-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: June 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
There’s always room for another well-told yarn espousing the themes of small-is-beautiful, hard work pays off, and, of...
Despite skepticism from bigger vehicles, the small, new-kid-on-the-block snowplow works to stay fit, sure that he will be useful one day soon.
“On the Mighty Mountain Road Crew, the trucks came in one size: BIG. That is, until a new snowplow joined the crew. ‘You’re such a little snowplow,’ the big trucks said. ‘Leave the heavy lifting to us.’ And off they roared.” So begins the tale, accompanied by an appealing, full-color illustration of a shyly smiling little snowplow looking up at an array of larger trucks, all of them sporting comical, doubtful facial expressions. In spring, summer, and fall, the little snowplow performs tasks secondary to those of the big trucks, as in creating leaf piles when the bigger trucks mound “mountains of salt and sand.” His early-winter training includes such whimsical exercise as raising and lowering his plow: “Ten times. Fast!” His strength, speed—and, yes, his small size—eventually allow him to be a snowstorm hero. Will, the human road-crew foreman and snowplow driver, enters the story at an appropriate time, taking the little snowplow out for his inaugural blizzard. There is a pleasing combination of Little Toot and The Little Engine That Could to the book, in both text and illustrations. Droll humor and excellent layout add to the fun.
There’s always room for another well-told yarn espousing the themes of small-is-beautiful, hard work pays off, and, of course, “I think I can.” (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-7074-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
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