BUSY BUILDERS

An animal construction crew gets busy building a school.

Rhyming verses describe the work done by the crew and their machines. The bulldozer clears the ground, the excavator digs, the crane moves bars to the forklift, the cement mixer prepares cement for fixing walls, the dump truck clears the rubble, and, lastly, the finishing touches such as paint and flowers are applied. The rhyme and meter used to tell the simple story are a bit forced and awkward throughout. Take, for example: “Melody works the tall crane. / It lifts a heavy load / Of bars to bring / Down to Bob / And his forklift on the road.” The illustrations, though, are colorful, lively, and engaging. Further, each board page has a different die-cut shape depending on the machine it features, creating a layered effect and the sense of moving through a busy construction site when turning the pages. Finally, children will appreciate the particularly cheerful last image of a ribbon-cutting ceremony revealing that the animal crew has been hard at work building a new school.

Construction-crazy toddlers and preschoolers will find plenty here to enjoy.