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ALPHABET TRUCKS by Samantha R. Vamos

ALPHABET TRUCKS

by Samantha R. Vamos ; illustrated by Ryan O'Rourke

Pub Date: Aug. 1st, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-58089-428-9
Publisher: Charlesbridge

Another new alphabet book—and focused on trucks? Yep. So put on your hard hats and get ready to roll with these 26 hardworking trucks featured in rhyming verse.

Trucks are magnets for little boys, and this convoy will both delight and introduce them to unusual ones. The alphabetic lineup has some obvious ones, like D for dump truck and P for pickup truck, but most of the vehicles will be new to fans, and many have surprising jobs. C is for cargo, G is for grapple, K is for knuckle-boom, L is for lowboy, O is for ore, Q is for quint (a truck with hose, tank, ladders and pump), V is for vacuum and X is for X-ray truck. Oils and acrylics illustrate the rhymes with graphic simplicity, incorporating multiple letters into the scenes: I is for ice cream truck, and the cones are “I” shapes. The letters are paired two to a spread across the gutter, interacting with each other: The snowplow truck and tow truck form a snowy scene.

Gear up, as this is bound to be a hit. From apple truck to zipper truck, “Day and night. / just watch and see. / Trucks work hard / from A to Z.” Vroom, vroom! (Picture book. 3-6)