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CARS

Name: CARS
Author: Nancy Smiler Levinson
ISBN: 0-8234-1614-3

by Nancy Smiler Levinson & illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2004

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This mid-level early reader focuses on the history of the automobile industry. The chronological organization begins with earlier forms of transportation and continues with the invention of the automobile in Germany and the US, the development of the assembly line in Detroit, and early days of family driving with open cars—“Mama wore a long coat, goggles, and a beehive bonnet. . . . The children wore hoods. So did their pet dog!” The history continues up to the current era, with mention of gas shortages, pollution, and the development of hybrid cars. Woven into the narrative is the sociological impact of the automobile with an eye to the young reader’s interests. Watercolor illustrations on each page provide accurate historical references to the early autos in their respective settings. Additional information includes a time line and a glossary of terms. A topic with definite appeal, full of fascinating details. (Easy reader. 5-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2004

ISBN: 0-8234-1614-3

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Holiday House

Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2004

Categories:

CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
RAIN FORESTS
by Nancy Smiler Levinson & illustrated by Diane Dawson Hearn

- BOOK REVIEW
PRAIRIE FRIENDS
by Nancy Smiler Levinson & illustrated by Stacey Schuett

- BOOK REVIEW
NORTH POLE, SOUTH POLE
by Nancy Smiler Levinson & illustrated by Diane Dawson Hearn

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TINY LITTLE ROCKET

by Richard Collingridge ; illustrated by Richard Collingridge ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 31, 2018

A fair choice, but it may need some support to really blast off.

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This rocket hopes to take its readers on a birthday blast—but there may or may not be enough fuel.

Once a year, a one-seat rocket shoots out from Earth. Why? To reveal a special congratulatory banner for a once-a-year event. The second-person narration puts readers in the pilot’s seat and, through a (mostly) ballad-stanza rhyme scheme (abcb), sends them on a journey toward the sun, past meteors, and into the Kuiper belt. The final pages include additional information on how birthdays are measured against the Earth’s rotations around the sun. Collingridge aims for the stars with this title, and he mostly succeeds. The rhyme scheme flows smoothly, which will make listeners happy, but the illustrations (possibly a combination of paint with digital enhancements) may leave the viewers feeling a little cold. The pilot is seen only with a 1960s-style fishbowl helmet that completely obscures the face, gender, and race by reflecting the interior of the rocket ship. This may allow readers/listeners to picture themselves in the role, but it also may divest them of any emotional connection to the story. The last pages—the backside of a triple-gatefold spread—label the planets and include Pluto. While Pluto is correctly labeled as a dwarf planet, it’s an unusual choice to include it but not the other dwarfs: Ceres, Eris, etc. The illustration also neglects to include the asteroid belt or any of the solar system’s moons.

A fair choice, but it may need some support to really blast off. (Picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: July 31, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-338-18949-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: David Fickling/Phoenix/Scholastic

Review Posted Online: April 15, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
LIONHEART
by Richard Collingridge ; illustrated by Richard Collingridge

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TRASHY TOWN

by Andrea Zimmerman & David Clemesha ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 30, 1999

Part of a spate of books intent on bringing the garbage collectors in children’s lives a little closer, this almost matches...

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Listeners will quickly take up the percussive chorus—“Dump it in, smash it down, drive around the Trashy town! Is the trash truck full yet? NO”—as they follow burly Mr. Gilly, the garbage collector, on his rounds from park to pizza parlor and beyond.

Flinging cans and baskets around with ease, Mr. Gilly dances happily through streetscapes depicted with loud colors and large, blocky shapes; after a climactic visit to the dump, he roars home for a sudsy bath.

Part of a spate of books intent on bringing the garbage collectors in children’s lives a little closer, this almost matches Eve Merriam’s Bam Bam Bam (1995), also illustrated by Yaccarino, for sheer verbal and visual volume. (Picture book. 5-7)