The Mixed-Up Truck

Starred review from April 11, 2016
It’s a cement mixer’s first day on the job, and with his bright eyes and peppermint-stripe drum, he’s ready to make a good impression on the no-nonsense trucks on site. But things go downhill quickly. Told to get “some powdery white cement,” he goes first to a flour factory, then to a sugar factory, and ends up building a huge, multi-tiered frosted cake that nobody wants. Third time’s the charm, though—he gets the right white powder at the cement factory and “presto! A building!” Savage (Supertruck) creates a sunny cast of vehicular characters, and his brief text is equally upbeat, punctuated by fun repetition (“presto!” is also used ironically to herald the cement mixer’s mishaps), and a play on words involving mix-up and mixed up. It’s a sweet lesson in managing employees and seeing a job through to the end. The cement mixer’s colleagues are miffed but stay calm, even when they’re being swallowed up by pink frosting; they know the new guy will get it right eventually, and he does. Ages 2–6. Agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates.

April 15, 2016
A brightly striped cement mixer tries to do the job right on its first day, with mixed results.Three confident-looking trucks are going about their jobs: "The crane was lifting. The dump truck was dumping. The digger was digging." When the cement mixer asks "How can I help?" the trucks reply, "Mix up some powdery white cement." Off goes the protagonist to mix white powder and water in its own jauntily striped red-and-white barrel. The result? An enormous three-layer cake. "You got mixed up," the trucks say, not unkindly, and repeat their instructions. The next white-powder mix: frosting. When at last the mix of white powder and water yields the expected cement--a building!--all the trucks are "dusty and tired." The little mixer's last job for the day? Mixing up (white) soap (powder) for the cleanup. Savage's pages are clear and uncrowded; his tidy, wide-eyed construction trucks work within view of a city skyline that could belong to Supertruck (2014), with large white-powder factories that are imposing and stolid and clearly state their products. The book's thematic elements--trucks and food and mastery of a skill--are well-pitched to a very young audience.A good reminder for adults that giving instructions is an art and that mistakes will be made from time to time (and that white powder not intended for small mixers should be put out of reach). (Picture book. 18 mos.-3)

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June 1, 2016

PreS-Gr 1-First days can be challenging. Playing on words, this picture book shows that this is true even for cement mixers-sometimes they mix things up while mixing things up. When this cement mixer starts at the construction site, all the other smiling trucks are busy: lifting, dumping, digging. "How can I help?" asks the cement mixer. "Mix up some powdery white cement," the trucks tell him. The page turn finds the cement mixer beaming proudly outside a giant flour mill. The other trucks lose their smiles when they later discover a cake instead of cement. The next white powder that the cement mixer tries comes from the sugar factory and becomes frosting. The book is smartly designed, and the refrain gives nothing away ("The cement mixer mixed up the white powder, added a little water, and presto!"), while the visuals, through signage, show the cement mixer's mistakes, with the results revealed after the page turn. Background colors depict the passing of the day, and as the sun sets, the cement mixer finally ends up at the factory with the "cement" sign. The next page shows all the happy trucks admiring a new building. The cement mixer has one final stop before ending the day-the soap factory. A giant citywide bubble bath leaves all the trucks clean and ready for a good night's sleep in the garage. Geometric art in bright, flat colors pops from the pages, as do the engaging personalities of the trucks. Through it all, the cement mixer remains determined, and upon the book's close, it seems likely that tomorrow will be a smoother day. VERDICT This tale's tight plot and winsome characters serve the dual purpose of exploring the world of vehicles and emphasizing the rewards of perseverance. A surefire storytime selection.-Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2016
Preschool-K On a cement mixer's first day at the construction site, the crane, the digger, and the dump truck tell him, Mix up some powdery white cement. His first attempt, mixing water with powder from the flour plant, ends with presto! A CAKE! After the other trucks point out his mistake, the new truck mixes water with powder from the sugar factory and presto! FROSTING! A trip to the cement plant brings a better result: presto! A BUILDING! But his last trip, to the soap factory, makes everyone happy with presto! A BUBBLE BATH! Page turns are used to good dramatic and humorous effect in this offering. The concise text reads aloud well, while leaving plenty of room for the illustrations to help tell the story. The artwork has a simple, clean lookeyes and mouths turn the vehicles into expressive characterswhile a shadowy cityscape provides an appropriate backdrop that brightens and darkens as the day goes on. An imaginative picture book for young truck fans to enjoy.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)