Road Work Ahead

August 1, 2011
A batch of Grandma's homemade oatmeal cookies beckons, but for this backseat narrator, the sights and sounds along the road to her house are equally compelling: "Road work ahead./ Move over. Go slow./ Jackhammers crack./ Look at them go." Indeed, the boy and his mother seem to have taken a detour through a suburban Busytown: nearly every possible construction or municipal maintenance crew is on the job (the police have even snagged a black-masked bad guy). Suen's (Red Light, Green Light) ultrashort verse leaves Ho (The Great Reindeer Rebellion) plenty of room to fill the page with work activity, cute animals, and visual jokes; one spread largely devoted to a crew installing a new telephone pole also introduces a crafty, escaped pet chicken that readers can follow for the remaining pages. There are comparatively few women on the job, and hardcore aficionados of construction books may find the illustrations cartoonish (would a veteran crew really have trouble wrangling an industrial hose?). But for general audiences, the cheeriness and level of detail should be more than sufficient. Ages 3â5.

August 1, 2011

On the car ride to visit Grandma, a young boy is delighted to see many trucks and construction workers doing their jobs.

As they wind through towns, down country roads and along the highway, they see construction crews doing all sorts of jobs, from jackhammering roads and pruning trees to changing streetlamp bulbs and fixing water pipes. As his unflappable mother drives (smile pasted on her face), the lucky boy even gets to watch as they put up telephone poles: "Left lane closed / for drilling holes. // Watch out now, / they're putting up poles." Ho's brightly colored artwork is tailor-made for her audience. While her scenes are visually packed with people, vehicles and activity, all are rendered with basic shapes and colors and lack the distracting details that would overwhelm young children. Suen's sparse rhyming verse leads readers through the busy scenes and uses simple vocabulary that suits both the youngest listeners and those just beginning to read. Throughout, kids can pick out funny things "hidden" within the pictures—people and animals that make repeated appearances. And while the focus may be on construction trucks, many community vehicles are in evidence as well.

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

October 1, 2011

PreS-K-This delightful story follows a little boy and his mom as they head out for Grandma's house. The journey takes a bit of a detour when they are delayed because of construction work around the city. Vibrant spreads depict crews working on roads, streetlights, and water mains; drilling holes; and putting up poles. Even the family dog, along for the ride, takes in the sights. The cheerful illustrations enhance the smooth, rhyming text. They are full of detail and hum with activity (a family of ducks and a whimsical rooster appear throughout). The simple phrases and rhymes provide the perfect read-aloud for lap-sits or storyhours with children who love construction or transportation themes.-Melissa Smith, Royal Oak Public Library, MI

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2011
Preschool-K In this straightforward picture book, a young boy, his mother, and their dog are journeying to Grandma's house. The route is fraught with delays at every turn: tree trimmers blocking the way, lane closures caused by cement mixers pouring new roads, and a traffic slowdown due to ducks crossing the street. The rhyming text is simple but still engaging for a preschooler: Road work ahead. / Move over. Go slow. / Jackhammers crack. / Look at them go. The cheery cartoon illustrations will be stimulating for young children while still feeling uncluttered. Dump trucks, ice-cream trucks, and a myriad of other vehicles weave through the pages, while one runaway chicken pops up repeatedly in a way that will be fun for kids to follow. Add this title to the overflowing collection of books for construction and truck enthusiasts.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)