Little Blue Truck

Starred review from April 28, 2008
All the animals happily greet Little Blue Truck as it amiably trundles over hill and dale: “Toad said, 'Croak!'/ and winked an eye/ when Little Blue Truck/ went rolling by.” No wonder, then, that the obnoxious Dump Truck gets a cold shoulder when it goes too fast (“I haven't got time to pass the day/ with every duck along the way!”) and gets stuck in the rural muck. But when the selfless Little Blue Truck gets mired while trying to help, all the animals rally 'round and teach Dump Truck about neighborliness (the particularly buff Toad implicitly offers a subsidiary lesson on the value of working out). Schertle's (All You Need for a Beach
) rhyming stanzas are succinct, and she gives readers plenty of opportunities to chime in with animal and vehicle noises; colored, standout fonts highlight these sounds for extra effect. McElmurry's (Mad About Plaid
) gouaches recall the heyday of Golden Books in their combination of vividness, naïveté and sweetness, and her rich palette achieves verisimilitude that is no less satisfying for being nostalgic. Ages 3–7.

July 1, 2008
PreS-Folksy rhyming stanzas introduce readers to Blue, the eponymous pickup truck, and the barnyard critters he greets as he navigates the country roads near his farmhouse. The first half of the book is an enchanting, toddler-entrancing symphony of animal noises and beeps. The cheerful text mimics the bouncing of the truck, and the warm folk-art illustrations call to mind the paintings of Grandma Moses. Then it begins to rain, and a mean, self-important dump truck enters the story. When the Dump gets mired in the mud and honks for help, he gets no response: "nobody heard/(or nobody cared)." Then Blue drives into the puddle to assist, but also gets stuck. When Blue cries for help, the animals rush to the rescue. From this, the dump truck learns that "a lot depends/on a helping hand/from a few good friends." While the message might be a little heavy-handed, this is still a fun, rollicking story that should find a place in most collections."Rachael Vilmar, Eastern Shore Regional Library, Salisbury, MD"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2008
In pointed tribute to good hearts and amiable natures everywhere, Schertle contrasts a huge dump truck, hurtling self-importantly down a country road, with a small pickup that greets each farm animal met along the way with a friendly Beep! When the dump truck bogs down in a deep slough, its cries of distress go unanswered. When the pickupgets stuckwhile trying to help, the animals rush in to lend a hearty push. Dedicating her illustrations to her own little truck, McElmurry creates crisply drawn rural scenes featuring a pair of driverless, animatevehicles mired inmuck that leaves all and sundry well spattered by the end. Freed at last, the dump truck exhibits a radical change of attitude (Now I see / a lot depends / on a helping hand / from a few good friends!) before roaring off on its appointed task and leaving the animals toboard the smaller truck for a noisy ride. Along with being a natural for storytime, this upbeat tale may spark a discussion about friendships and helping one another.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)