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THE OLD BLUE PICKUP TRUCK

Name: THE OLD BLUE PICKUP TRUCK
Author: Candice F. Ransom
ISBN: 978-0-8027-9591-5

by Candice F. Ransom and illustrated by Jenny Mattheson ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2009

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This quaint, sweet offering presents the simple story of a father and daughter running errands together in their blue pickup truck. The daughter describes their visits to such places as the nursery, the hardware store and a farm where they pick up plants, building supplies and a pig. In the daughter’s mind, these purchases transform the old blue pickup into, among other things, a garden, a toolshed and a farm. As father and daughter make their way home, it begins to rain. They cover the bed with a plastic tablecloth, and by the time they get home the sun has come back out. The tireless pair decides to do some planting, build a house for the pig and, finally, polish up their trusty truck. Mattheson’s oil-on–primed paper illustrations—characterized by clean lines, bright colors, plenty of open space and somewhat stylized figures—add to the old-fashioned feel of the text. A positive portrayal of a father/daughter relationship sure to be popular where demand for truck books is high—and where is it not? (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: June 9, 2009

ISBN: 978-0-8027-9591-5

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2009

Categories:

CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
PONY ISLAND
by Candice F. Ransom and illustrated by Wade Zahares

- BOOK REVIEW
TRACTOR DAY
by Candice F. Ransom & illustrated by Laura J. Bryant

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RESCUE ON THE OUTER BANKS
by Candice F. Ransom & illustrated by Karen Ritz

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

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A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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BECAUSE YOUR DADDY LOVES YOU

by Andrew Clements & illustrated by R.W. Alley ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 23, 2005

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Give this child’s-eye view of a day at the beach with an attentive father high marks for coziness: “When your ball blows across the sand and into the ocean and starts to drift away, your daddy could say, Didn’t I tell you not to play too close to the waves? But he doesn’t. He wades out into the cold water. And he brings your ball back to the beach and plays roll and catch with you.” Alley depicts a moppet and her relaxed-looking dad (to all appearances a single parent) in informally drawn beach and domestic settings: playing together, snuggling up on the sofa and finally hugging each other goodnight. The third-person voice is a bit distancing, but it makes the togetherness less treacly, and Dad’s mix of love and competence is less insulting, to parents and children both, than Douglas Wood’s What Dads Can’t Do (2000), illus by Doug Cushman. (Picture book. 5-7)