Otto

June 13, 2011
With his homonymic name, Otto might be forgiven for loving autos "above all places and things (and even most people)." More than his one-track racetrack mind, Otto's flaw is his self-centeredness. In his rush to his race carâfestooned bedroom, he does not return his mother's hug, and at recess, he will play only car-themed games with his friends Chevy, Mini, and Kia. Despite his mother's admonition that "Everyone has to shift gears sometime," Otto remains unconvinced until he wakes up as a sporty red convertible. Nobody notices the change, yet he can only "honk" and "vroom." He drives to school amid traffic fumes, plays alone, and has to skip lunch. Back home, he sadly "ran out of gas and went to sleep." LaReau and Magoon (who previously collaborated on Ugly Fish) take aim at children focused on material goods (or other obsessions) over relationships; an undersize typeface and long explanations suggest this warning proved hard to distill. Overnight, Otto transforms into a considerate and grateful boy, providing a wishful, Pinocchio-like conclusion but minimal practical advice. Ages 2â6.

June 1, 2011

Otto, as is only fitting, is in love with autos—obnoxiously so.

He's even a little bullying about the topic. No food unless it can be referenced to cars, no playing in the school playground unless is has to do with cars. As for a bedtime story: "I don't want to hear it unless it's about cars." So the next morning Otto wakens as an auto. Or at least in his mind's eye; everyone else sees him as Otto, though the strange honking and vroom noises he is making have them wondering. When he can't grab his cereal, he honks at his mother, who tells him that "This is a kitchen, not a garage." No breakfast, buddy. No one wants to play car at school, so he's left to drive in circles. On it goes until he has what all cars have: a breakdown—sputtery-sputtery-sput. At bedtime, Otto's mother suggests that "everyone has to switch gears sometime." LaReau plays the obsessive card closely and well: Otto is selfish in his obsession, but, on a note of hope, he is capable of change when the time is right. It helps that Magoon's elastic, cartoony artwork can easily shift from little devil to little boy in a flash.

Maybe monomaniacal preschool readers will take the hint, too. (Picture book. 2-6)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

August 1, 2011

K-Gr 3-A dapper, redheaded boy loves cars so much that he wakes up one morning to find that he has become one. But not just any car-he's a flashy, red sports car. During the day he learns that his new form definitely isn't what it's cracked up to be. He can't eat his wheelie cereal for breakfast. Auto/Otto can't fit on the bus and has to drive himself to school. He becomes frustrated while stuck in miserable traffic and is late. At recess, no playground for him. His only option is to drive laps around it. Bedtime finally arrives and a doleful Otto listens to his mom: "Everyone has to switch gears sometime." Otto wakes up a changed boy and is open to new experiences. An unexpected ending wraps up this story beautifully, providing opportunity for discussion of this multithemed gem. Magoon sets the mood on the end pages with Otto driving a sports car. The digital illustrations are saturated with bold colors and pop off the page. Body language and facial expressions are priceless, and there are many delightful details for readers to pore over. LaReau cleverly sprinkles car speak throughout the story. Otto's mother calls him "my little speedster." His friends are named Chevy, Mini, and Kia, and his teacher Mrs. Dodge. A winner, whether sharing with a group or in a one-on-one setting.-Anne Beier, Clifton Public Library, NJ

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2011
Grades K-3 Rubber-tire backpack. Speed Racer bed.Wheelies breakfast cereal. Otto has a one-track (race-track, you might say) mind. When he gets to school, it's more of the same: He couldn't wait for recess, where he would insist on playing Race around the Playground with his friends, Chevy, Mini, and Kia. It's all cars, all the time, until the fateful day that Otto wakes up in his car-shaped bed and discovers that he too is a car. Now that his friends and teachers simply ignore what he says (Honk-honk-honk!), Otto begins to realize how a refusal to try new things can lead to isolation. It's an interesting message, and LaReau makes the most of it, infusing vehicular imagery into everything. Instead of counting sheep, Otto countswait for itjeep. Magoon's colorful cartoon art particularly wows when it goes large scale, as during the reveal of Otto's obsessively decorated bedroom or the bird's-eye angle of the bustling playground as Otto makes dull loops. If there's a young car fanatic in your family, this may help siphon a bit of fuel.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)