A warmly inclusive addition to the things-that-go genre.
A paean to air-traffic controllers, bus mechanics, subway signal maintainers, and the other support personnel who ensure that transportation systems work.
Snappy rhyming verse introduces the question: “Who guides floating fleets with ease / and water-travel expertise? / Who checks weather, minds the clocks, / brings the ferry in to docks?” A car ferry, yacht, fishing boat, container ship, and more—even a green submarine with yellow polka dots—crowd the waters in a representative double-page spread. With the turn of the page, readers see the answer, rendered in jaunty, blocky lettering: “IT’S NOT JUST THE CAPTAIN!” The verse continues, detailing the work of the land-based dispatchers, who sit in an office on the wharf labeled “Harbormaster” as the ferry pulls in to its berth. Support crews for buses, trucks, subways, trains, and planes are also introduced, with Neubecker’s characteristically busy cartoons depicting happy passengers and workers of many different racial and gender presentations; one, a harbormaster, uses a wheelchair. The verse rollicks along as smoothly as these varied vehicles move, carrying readers through concise descriptions of jobs and roles they may never have considered, until they reach the final, exuberant line: “TEAMWORK HELPS THE WORLD TO MOVE!” Picture-book shelves are groaning with celebrations of transportation, but this one stands out in its salutary commitment to shining a spotlight on support teams.
A warmly inclusive addition to the things-that-go genre. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 9, 2024
ISBN: 9781665936378
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2024
While there are many rhyming truck books out there, this stands out for being a collection of poems.
Rhyming poems introduce children to anthropomorphized trucks of all sorts, as well as the jobs that they do.
Adorable multiethnic children are the drivers of these 16 trucks—from construction equipment to city trucks, rescue vehicles and a semi—easily standing in for readers, a point made very clear on the final spread. Varying rhyme schemes and poem lengths help keep readers’ attention. For the most part, the rhymes and rhythms work, as in this, from “Cement Mixer”: “No time to wait; / he can’t sit still. / He has to beg your pardon. / For if he dawdles on the way, / his slushy load will harden.” Slonim’s trucks each sport an expressive pair of eyes, but the anthropomorphism stops there, at least in the pictures—Vestergaard sometimes takes it too far, as in “Bulldozer”: “He’s not a bully, either, / although he’s big and tough. / He waits his turn, plays well with friends, / and pushes just enough.” A few trucks’ jobs get short shrift, to mixed effect: “Skid-Steer Loader” focuses on how this truck moves without the typical steering wheel, but “Semi” runs with a royalty analogy and fails to truly impart any knowledge. The acrylic-and-charcoal artwork, set against white backgrounds, keeps the focus on the trucks and the jobs they are doing.
While there are many rhyming truck books out there, this stands out for being a collection of poems. (Picture book/poetry. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7636-5078-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 28, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An uplifting tale that will especially resonate with truck mavens.
In this follow-up to Trash Truck (2020), two good pals keep on truckin’.
Donny, a raccoon, and Walter, a bear, are besties who do everything together, from taking care of dental hygiene (hilariously, Donny brushes using a tree branch, while Walter flosses with a bootlace) to savoring a light dumpster breakfast to taking a bit of exercise (such as running from a swarm of angry bees after Walter steals their honey). “Clever and crafty” Donny and Walter are into subterfuge: To trick a vendor into selling them ice cream, Walter dons an overcoat, and Donny, sporting a fedora, rides atop the bear’s shoulders. Life’s good—except these two have no one to play with. Jump rope’s no fun; if each of them holds one end of the rope, no one can jump. Seesawing is unequally balanced, weight-wise. They don’t have much luck searching for friends, but, ever optimistic, they continue looking. Then, when least expected, two great buddies literally pick them up: It’s Trash Truck and young, blond, pale-skinned Hank! And what adventures follow! Donny and Walter can now jump rope, and the “disguised” ice cream buyers now order four cones. Whether or not readers are already familiar with Trash Truck and Hank from the previous book, they’re in for sprightly fun; the cartoony color illustrations, featuring endearing characters, are filled with giggle-worthy sight gags. Background humans are diverse.
An uplifting tale that will especially resonate with truck mavens. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9780063349414
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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