A sizable gallery but, overall, a monotonous one.
Fans of trucks, trains, aircraft, and other conveyances large and small will find dozens gathered here, lined up neatly in squads according to function from “Demolition” to “Space Travel.”
Though most of the vehicles are easily identifiable by sight, small labels will clue in readers unfamiliar with specialized monikers like “wheel excavator” or vehicles not found in the United States, such as the colorfully decorated Pakistani bus and a motorized “pooper scooper scooter” from France. Cartoon passengers or other human figures convey a sense of size, and with occasional concessions, the floating, wheeled or winged machines are depicted at least close to relative scale on each spread. But the pleasures of poring over all the transports, earth movers and Earth leavers will pall quickly even for confirmed enthusiasts: So flat and generic are the images that many with similar purposes look like variations on the same shape. Moreover, an (rather skimpy) assortment of jointed arms, sliders, spinners and flaps that lift to provide cutaway views create at best only localized feelings of movement or visual drama. Also, the titular “ultimate” begs the lack of military or (aside from a space shuttle on the final spread) historical vehicles on view.
A sizable gallery but, overall, a monotonous one. (Pop-up informational picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-2-8480-1942-0
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Twirl/Chronicle
Review Posted Online: Oct. 5, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Bold, brightly colored graphics, big, brushed letters and patent silliness catch the eye but perhaps not the imagination. A little girl asks a little boy, “How does a truck work?” The boy says, “Let me think,” as they both regard a shiny red panel truck. On the next page, a silhouette cutaway of the truck is shown, with a supine lion turning the gears with his toes. “That’s how!” he says. The girl responds, “Wow!” And so it goes. The girl asks a question, the boy thinks about it, the visual shows some very odd animals providing the engine for a pink airplane (birds with fuchsia feet), a steamroller (a parrot tickling some highly amused bears), a train (a kitchen full of monkeys). Finally, the girl asks about a bicycle, but before he can answer, she climbs aboard, puts on her helmet and rides off. “Wow!” he says. Ink drawings and digital shapes make for a smooth, cartoony surface. It all feels sexist and gender-divisive, even though the girl makes the final—correct—point. Young readers might admire the boy’s powers of invention (the pink bunny manipulating the green lizard inside the backhoe is really quite something), but they might also wonder both why he pontificates so and why she bothers to ask. A nifty concept doesn't quite make it in execution. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-201963-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
An inviting, accessible title for new readers.
Garland’s little red car invites children along for a ride to reading success.
Opening endpapers show an aerial view of a Levittown-like setting with a single driveway occupied by a car. The title page zooms in on this home, with the car facing the reader, its headlights like eyes and its fender a subtle smile. That expression is amplified in the closer view on the first page of the book proper, with the simple text “Car looks good.” But when the car ventures out to “go far,” it ends up becoming quite a mess after mud, smoke, and birds sully its shiny, red body. “Car does not look good now,” reads the controlled text. “Car is sad.” Happily, Car is also resourceful and heads off to a carwash. Simple lines—“Car gets wet. Splash, splash. / Car gets suds. // Car gets a rub. Mmmmmmm”—see it getting clean again. Closing endpapers picture the car driving back through the suburban neighborhood again, its bright yellow headlights echoing the lights in the houses. Digital illustrations may make some children think of Pixar’s Cars films, particularly in scenes where Car’s facial expressions are strongest and most humorous—as when the birds make their mess.
An inviting, accessible title for new readers. (Early reader. 5-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2598-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
© Copyright 2024 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.
