A well-designed and likable addition to the hefty field of picture books for young fans of useful heavy machinery and trucks.
John Deere tractors show their multipurpose usefulness in this continuation of a picture-book series for young children.
Picture books about heavy machinery, construction equipment, big trucks, and tractors are hardly in short supply, but considering the genre’s avid young fan base, there’s always room for one more. With engaging simplicity, nonfiction author Gebhart (2 Lives in 3 Acts, 2017, etc.) offers a crisply photographed tribute to the venerable John Deere tractor for children in the pre-K to early-elementary range. Following the formula of his previous celebrations of heavy machinery brands Caterpillar and Bobcat, Gebhart introduces the John Deere tractor as “him,” again personalizing a utilitarian vehicle for his young audience as he did with “Bob” the Bobcat and “CAT” the Caterpillar. Rather than a story narrative, however, children are treated to photographs of Deere models (one with treads, one with wheels) in action, equipped variously with drills, rollers, forklifts, a snowplow, excavators, and loaders. The photographs, mostly taken under blue skies and shot on farms, construction sites, and other outdoor areas, are centered on the top half of each page. The eye-pleasing design includes captions beneath the images with simple descriptions of the actions shown (“Deere lifts a concrete block,” “Deere plants a Christmas tree,” “Deere pours stones”). There is also a shot of the tractor’s control center interior (“What Deere looks like inside”). For the most part, tractor operators are glimpsed through the vehicles’ windows, although two captions refer to human “help.” One says, “Deere gets help on a farm,” but because the driver is only dimly seen, the caption’s meaning could be clearer. The second “help” photo shows a tractor operator and other workers front and center, and the context is plain to see—as is this book’s overall appeal for pint-sized enthusiasts.
A well-designed and likable addition to the hefty field of picture books for young fans of useful heavy machinery and trucks.Pub Date: March 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5447-8860-9
Page Count: 24
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: April 27, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not for the faint-hearted—who are mostly adults anyway—but for stouthearted kids who love a brush with the sinister:...
A magnificently creepy fantasy pits a bright, bored little girl against a soul-eating horror that inhabits the reality right next door.
Coraline’s parents are loving, but really too busy to play with her, so she amuses herself by exploring her family’s new flat. A drawing-room door that opens onto a brick wall becomes a natural magnet for the curious little girl, and she is only half-surprised when, one day, the door opens onto a hallway and Coraline finds herself in a skewed mirror of her own flat, complete with skewed, button-eyed versions of her own parents. This is Gaiman’s (American Gods, 2001, etc.) first novel for children, and the author of the Sandman graphic novels here shows a sure sense of a child’s fears—and the child’s ability to overcome those fears. “I will be brave,” thinks Coraline. “No, I am brave.” When Coraline realizes that her other mother has not only stolen her real parents but has also stolen the souls of other children before her, she resolves to free her parents and to find the lost souls by matching her wits against the not-mother. The narrative hews closely to a child’s-eye perspective: Coraline never really tries to understand what has happened or to fathom the nature of the other mother; she simply focuses on getting her parents back and thwarting the other mother for good. Her ability to accept and cope with the surreality of the other flat springs from the child’s ability to accept, without question, the eccentricity and arbitrariness of her own—and every child’s own—reality. As Coraline’s quest picks up its pace, the parallel world she finds herself trapped in grows ever more monstrous, generating some deliciously eerie descriptive writing.
Not for the faint-hearted—who are mostly adults anyway—but for stouthearted kids who love a brush with the sinister: Coraline is spot on. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: July 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-380-97778-8
Page Count: 176
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2002
SEEN & HEARD
More gift book than storybook, this is a meaningful addition to nursery bookshelves
A young child explores the unlimited potential inherent in all humans.
“Have you ever wondered why you are here?” asks the second-person narration. There is no one like you. Maybe you’re here to make a difference with your uniqueness; maybe you will speak for those who can’t or use your gifts to shine a light into the darkness. The no-frills, unrhymed narrative encourages readers to follow their hearts and tap into their limitless potential to be anything and do anything. The precisely inked and colored artwork plays with perspective from the first double-page spread, in which the child contemplates a mountain (or maybe an iceberg) in their hands. Later, they stand on a ladder to place white spots on tall, red mushrooms. The oversized flora and fauna seem to symbolize the presumptively insurmountable, reinforcing the book’s message that anything is possible. This quiet read, with its sophisticated central question, encourages children to reach for their untapped potential while reminding them it won’t be easy—they will make messes and mistakes—but the magic within can help overcome falls and failures. It’s unlikely that members of the intended audience have begun to wonder about their life’s purpose, but this life-affirming mood piece has honorable intentions. The child, accompanied by an adorable piglet and sporting overalls and a bird-beaked cap made of leaves, presents white.
More gift book than storybook, this is a meaningful addition to nursery bookshelves . (Picture book. 2-8)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-946873-75-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: May 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
