(2) PS Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino. Geometric digital art using bright, flat colors and patterns paired with the fast rhythm of the text catapult viewers through an emergency call to the fire station and a nighttime run. "Hey, yo! / Firefighter Flo! / You're a hero! / You're a pro!" burst the opening lines of the text as a crescent moon shines down on the fire station, with one lit window upstairs. Inside, Firefighter Flo and the firehouse Dalmatian are up and rousing the crew (a diverse mix of genders and skin colors), who are off and running for the fire truck on the next page. "STOMP! STOMP! STOMP! STOMP!" Loud onomatopoeia (CLANG, SCREECH, RUFF, WHOOOSSHH!) appears on every page, extending the visual momentum. At the site of the blaze, a two-story house, the firefighters battle the flames from the outside, and Firefighter Flo charges inside to rescue the family's dog. Once all is well, Firefighter Flo and the other firefighters head back to the station and to bed. The story closes with the same jaunty cheer for Firefighter Flo that opened the book, as she sleeps peacefully on her bottom bunk, with another firefighter snoozing above her and the Dalmatian curled up on the floor. This high-energy, heart-pounding tribute to firefighters, with its bold visuals and enthusiastic text, would make an especially lively pick for a group setting like storytime, even for the youngest listeners--invite a local firefighter to share in the fun.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2023

(2) PS Illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong. Two adults and two kids pack up their things and set out on a camping ­adventure. The children are fascinated by the sights Mother Nature has to offer, stopping to explore in wonder everything that they see and using all their senses to do so. Their enjoyment of nature, big ­spiders included, is palpable. ­Zimmerman's text is a set of conditional statements ("If I were a tree...") that imagines what a tree feels, tastes, smells, hears, and sees--even what a tree might be, know, and love. The text's consistent rhymes ("I'd feel nests on my bark, bats hiding till dark") flow smoothly and capture the many details that the children observe--from worms to "minerals in mud" to "the sneeze of a mole." The book's final rhymes incorporate lyrical metaphors that could apply easily to the socio-emotional side of human lives: "I'd know branches can bend, and cold spells will end, / That spring will renew, and life carries through." Tsong's ­illustrations center a happy ­multiracial family. The pictures, created via ­printmaking techniques and digitally assembled, are highly textured, some even appearing to incorporate oversized fingerprints. Lush, lively greens pop off the page. An appended spread provides tips about using "your five senses" to "get to know" trees.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) PS Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino. "Today some old buildings must come down so a new building can go up." Mr. Gilly, who starred as a trash collector in Trashy Town (rev. 3/99), is now employed as a demolition worker. Still clad in a blue plaid shirt and brown coveralls, Mr. Gilly happily gets the job done: "My crane may move at just a crawl, but watch out for my wrecking ball!" The creators follow the first book's format: left-hand pages feature the text's infectious onomatopoetic refrain: "GO! / Swing the / ball, hit the / wall! / SMASH, / SMASH, / SMASH! / Swing the / ball, hit the / wall! / CRASH, / CRASH, / CRASH!" At each stage of demolition, right-hand pages track the progress: "CRUMBLE, / TUMBLE, / down goes / wood. / Is the / demolition / done? / NO!" Eventually, Mr. Gilly switches from crane to bulldozer to clean up the mess of bricks, wood, glass, and stone. Yaccarino's color-block illustrations cleverly portray the wrecking ball's pendulum-like movement with bits of debris in orbit around it. An intermittently rhyming text and energetic page design build momentum and excitement. From the front endpapers, we know that a new library and park are "coming soon"; the back endpapers reveal the revitalized city block. With a preschooler-pleasing subject, this rollicking book will bring the house down.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2020

(3) PS Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino. "Dump it in, smash it down, drive around the Trashy Town! Is the trash truck full yet? NO." A trashman makes his rounds in this board-book edition of the picture book. Yaccarino's compositions, with their large blocks of bright color and simplified shapes, work well in this smaller format. The well-designed original's open look is better suited for group sharing, however.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 1999

(3) PS A boy imagines how, as a train conductor, he will take tickets, yell "all aboard," steam across bridges and up mountains, all while including his little brother in the adventure. Bright acrylics and a straightforward text will appeal to young train fans; the boy's desire to share in something with his sibling will appeal to parents.

Reviewer: Rebecca Reed Whidden

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Ju Hong Chen. Straightforward (if wordy) text describes the dogged efforts of Eliza Scidmore to have the famous Washington, D.C., cherry trees--symbol of Japanese-U.S. friendship--brought to this country in 1912. Scidmore was ahead of her time as a writer, traveler, photographer, and National Geographic Society member, and readers may be inspired by her work. Impressionistic paintings (some blurry) accompany the narrative. No sources are provided. Timeline.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) PS A boy plays with his baby brother and fantasizes about life "when I am a fire engine man." Acrylic illustrations in primary and secondary colors show the boy driving a fire truck and extinguishing a blaze alongside his adult colleagues. The subtext--a proud big brother trying to impress the little one--is subtly incorporated throughout.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS Illustrated by Marc Rosenthal. Like a caffeinated Mike Mulligan, backhoe driver Mr. Rally, accompanied by his dog Lightning, completes not one but "five big digging jobs" in a single day. Friendly retro-looking cartoons and a spirited, rhyming text ("Dig up rock and dig up clay! / Dig up dirt and dig all day!") take Mr. Rally through his day digging "the drain for the rain," "the pool at the school," and so on.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann

(3) PS A young boy who dreams of buying and operating his own digger imagines that he uses it to build a playground that both he and his baby brother can enjoy. With just a few carefully selected words, this gentle fantasy addresses a young child's ambivalence toward and gradual acceptance of a new sibling. Bright acrylic spreads capturing the colorful construction vehicles are certain to lure toddlers.

Reviewer: CHristine Sarrazin

(3) PS Illustrated by Karen Barbour. The fire alarm sounds, "Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!" calling a varied band of animal firefighters to their next assignment--where they get the job done and reap a special reward. The childlike illustrations, which fill the pages with bold, brilliant colors, seem to have a life of their own in this visual and auditory celebration of firefighting.

Reviewer: Christina Dorr

(3) K-3 Illustrated by True Kelley. With little success, a young girl tries to teach Toby, her devoted and lovable dog, some simple tricks. Her brother thinks that Toby is dumb, which only increases her determination, and she finally achieves results. The watercolor, acrylic, and pen-and-ink illustrations in this well-designed picture book are amusing.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(1) PS Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino. This well-designed picture book does a lot with a simple idea, following Mr. Gilly, the trashman, as he makes his rounds. "Dump it in, smash it down, drive around the Trashy Town! Is the trash truck full yet? NO." Yaccarino uses large blocks of bright color and simplified shapes to create his compositions. Lots of fun here, for toddlers, preschoolers, and adults who enjoy sharing books with this audience.

Reviewer: Nancy Vasilakis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 1999