When it comes to doing heavy lifting, you can count on this tale.
Let’s hear it for Crane Jane!
While listening to this book, the second in the Big Jobs, Bold Women series, following Firefighter Flo! (2022), readers will hear cacophonous noises in Jane’s wake given all the rhythmic, onomatopoeic sounds accompanying her efforts as a crane operator at the dock. Jaunty, terse rhymed couplets describe Jane’s hectic, exciting workday as she expertly maneuvers her crane to lift, move, and set down heavy cargo—freight containers and trucks—on and off ships. What a joyful din (“TROMP! TROMP!” "CLANG-CLANG!” “WHOOSH! WHOOSH!”) her job produces. The sound words generally appear in pairs or trios and are usually set in yellow boldfaced capitals so they stand out, and construction-site and vehicle mavens will be eager to simulate them. Children will be especially intrigued by a scene in which a firetruck, lifted from a ship and caught in a heavy wind, dangles precariously from the crane and is improbably saved by a flock of helpful gulls. The digital illustrations feature bold, eye-popping colors and lots of detailed activity. It’s great that kids see a woman, especially a woman of color, carry out her job so skillfully and effortlessly in a predominantly male-dominated profession. Jane has light brown skin and dark braids beneath her pale-green hard hat. Her co-workers and crew are racially diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
When it comes to doing heavy lifting, you can count on this tale. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9780823451586
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
Count on construction die-hards falling in love, but discerning readers would be wise to look elsewhere for their...
Less ambitious than Chris Gall’s widely known Dinotrux (2009) and sequels, this British import systematically relegates each dinosaur/construction-equipment hybrid to its most logical job.
The title figures are introduced as bigger than both diggers and dinosaurs, and rhyming text and two construction-helmeted kids show just what these creatures are capable of. Each diggersaur has a specific job to do and a distinct sound effect. The dozersaurus moves rocks with a “SCRAAAAPE!!!” while the rollersaurus flattens lumps with a cheery “TOOT TOOT!!” Each diggersaur is numbered, with 12 in all, allowing this to be a counting book on the sly. As the diggersaurs (not all of which dig) perform jobs that regular construction equipment can do, albeit on a larger scale, there is no particular reason why any of them should have dinosaurlike looks other than just ’cause. Peppy computer art tries valiantly to attract attention away from the singularly unoriginal text. “Diggersaurs dig with bites so BIG, / each SCOOP creates a crater. // They’re TOUGH and STRONG / with necks so long— / they’re super EXCAVATORS!” Far more interesting are the two human characters, a white girl and a black boy, that flit about the pictures offering commentary and action. Much of the fun of the book can be found in trying to spot them on every two-page spread.
Count on construction die-hards falling in love, but discerning readers would be wise to look elsewhere for their dino/construction kicks. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-9848-4779-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
While there are many rhyming truck books out there, this stands out for being a collection of poems.
Rhyming poems introduce children to anthropomorphized trucks of all sorts, as well as the jobs that they do.
Adorable multiethnic children are the drivers of these 16 trucks—from construction equipment to city trucks, rescue vehicles and a semi—easily standing in for readers, a point made very clear on the final spread. Varying rhyme schemes and poem lengths help keep readers’ attention. For the most part, the rhymes and rhythms work, as in this, from “Cement Mixer”: “No time to wait; / he can’t sit still. / He has to beg your pardon. / For if he dawdles on the way, / his slushy load will harden.” Slonim’s trucks each sport an expressive pair of eyes, but the anthropomorphism stops there, at least in the pictures—Vestergaard sometimes takes it too far, as in “Bulldozer”: “He’s not a bully, either, / although he’s big and tough. / He waits his turn, plays well with friends, / and pushes just enough.” A few trucks’ jobs get short shrift, to mixed effect: “Skid-Steer Loader” focuses on how this truck moves without the typical steering wheel, but “Semi” runs with a royalty analogy and fails to truly impart any knowledge. The acrylic-and-charcoal artwork, set against white backgrounds, keeps the focus on the trucks and the jobs they are doing.
While there are many rhyming truck books out there, this stands out for being a collection of poems. (Picture book/poetry. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7636-5078-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 28, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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