Jon
Scieszka's Trucktown (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, for ages 2 to
8)
Some young readers like quiet stories about shy turtles or sparkly fish. And
some like BIG, FUNNY stories about TRUCKS that go CRASHING into things. Jon
Scieszka's Trucktown books are perfect for the second sort of kids. Scieszka
was recently named the first National Ambassador for Young People's
Literature by the Library of Congress and the Children's Book Council. He's
made it his goal to encourage more young boys to love books, and Trucktown
is a great step in that direction.
The first picture book, "Trucktown:
Smash! Crash!," came out back in January and has been a favorite ever
since. (I remember one little dude who visited the book's display every day
for a week, tugging his mother by the hand and chanting "Truck, truck.
Truck, truck." Mom soon rewarded his dedication.) Now the world of Trucktown
is growing: five new books have just been released, and they expand the fun,
offering sturdy board books for pre-school toddlers and easy
beginning-readers for kids in the early grades of school.
First, the board books:
* "Meet Jack Truck" follows the tough little hero of Trucktown as he rolls
down the road with his best friend, Dump Truck Dan. They race, play games,
and tell jokes before heading home to the garage for a good night's sleep.
* "Who's That Truck?" introduces more of Jack's buddies, all the varied
trucks of Trucktown, including Payloader Pete, Monster Truck Max, and chatty
Gabriella Garbage Truck.
* "Vroom! It's Color Time" uses the road signs of Trucktown to teach young
readers (and Jack) to recognize and remember colors.
And for beginning readers:
* In "Pete's Party," young readers get to help Jack & Gabriella find the
party by reading and following road signs all the way to Pete's house.
(While some instruct the reader to "Stop" or "Keep Right," others say "Keep
Smiling" and "Dance!"
* "Zoom! Boom! Bully" is my favorite: It's a counting story in which each of
Jack's friends tallies up some items--barrels, tires, crates--only to have
them smashed apart by Big Rig, a big bully tractor-trailer. Only after Big
Rig crashes into the giant cake does he realize that everything he's ruined
was intended for his birthday party. With all the smashing and crashing, Big
Rig declares it his best birthday ever.
Trucktown is a really fun place: little readers will want to visit again and
again!
Review by
Mark David Bradshaw, June 19, 2008
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