(1) PS Daredevil Annie has a big imagination--and a plan. In her sleek racing car, Annie zooms out of her second-floor bedroom window; then, gleefully bypassing all geographical logic, drives up a mountain; through a desert, a forest, and a city; and across a finish line (first place!). Dynamic illustrations reinforce Annie's racecar love with details in her racecar-themed bedroom, where she ends her epic journey, in bed reading a book with her family.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2019

(4) 4-6 Ultimate Sports Road Trips series. Following a rah-rah introduction about the featured sport, each entertaining, if superficial, volume highlights seven or eight stadiums or sites that would make great road trips for super-fans. The four- or six-page sections provide basic place facts (including name, location, date opened, capacity), overviews of the teams' or participants' histories, and captioned photos. A trip map is appended. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Ultimate Sports Road Trips titles: Ultimate NHL Road Trip, Ultimate Soccer Road Trip, Ultimate NBA Road Trip, Ultimate MLB Road Trip, Ultimate NASCAR Road Trip, Ultimate College Basketball Road Trip, Ultimate NFL Road Trip, and Ultimate College Football Road Trip.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Dan Santat. In a mash-up of fairy tale and auto race, the Princess passes a litany of favorite characters from fairy tales, nursery rhymes, and classic books like The Wonderful Wizard of Oz after a pit stop. In the vibrant art, full-bleed pages of bold lines and dramatic layouts play up tension and movement. This speedy freshening up of classic children's literature honors the power of confidence and determination and puts the Princess in the driver's seat.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2018

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Douglas Holgate. Aspiring archaeologist Clementine--raised on digs all over the world by a now-missing archaeologist mother--and her robot brother escape their orphanage and enter a dangerous car race through desert terrain to recover hidden artifacts. A futuristic Indiana Jones–esque story rolls out in graphic-novel format. Action-packed panels and a dark, ruddy palette capture the adventure's dirt and grit.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(3) 4-6 Sports All-Stars series. Succinct, easy-to-read biographies of these sports stars include brief looks at each person's childhood before focusing on that individual's particular training and road to athletic success. Dramatic narration, direct quotes, color photographs, and sidebars round out the informative main texts; "All-Star Stats" for that sport are appended. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Sports All-Stars titles: Danica Patrick, Derek Carr, Ezekiel Elliott, Kris Byrant, and Matt Ryan.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(2) PS Five mice sit in their crayon-colored racecars at the starting line. The scene then degenerates from Formula One to demolition derby as the cars meet disaster at every turn. The jaunty narrative, with minimal text and rough-and-ready digital illustrations, conveys suspense, poignancy, heroism, and exhilaration. Spacious book design, in-your-face typography, dynamic compositions, and speedy pacing add up to a spirited read-aloud.

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2018

(3) YA In this fourth story about the Honeycutts (Blue; Comfort; Aim), fourteen-year-old twins Ellie and Ida grow apart as the family struggles to cope with Daddy's post-war trauma. Alternating narratives (with the occasional free-verse entry) relate each sister's unique interests and progression on her own life path. The 1952 setting, with social tensions including the Korean War and the polio epidemic, makes a compelling backdrop to this coming-of-age story. Reading list, websites.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(3) K-3 STEAM Stories series. Illustrated by Magalí Mansilla. In this STEAM-endorsing series of picture books, Suzy and Max use problem-solving skills to build playground equipment, race go-karts, and rebuild a robot. Using trial and error, they explore science and technology to achieve their goals, occasionally helped by an adult. Additional STEAM information is provided on the last two pages. The stories are pretty basic, but the kids' can-do attitudes will inspire the youngest scientists and engineers. Websites. Review covers these STEAM Stories titles: The Backyard Build, The Great Go-Kart Race, and Robot Repairs.

Reviewer: Janet Dawson

(4) K-3 Bolt: Gearhead Garage series. Action-packed color photographs, diagrams, and charts are the focus of these minimal-text introductions to different engine-powered racing vehicles. Each book consists of four brief chapters discussing topics such as the vehicle's history, external features, statistics, race venues, safety gear, and projections about the vehicle's future. Oddly, little information is provided about interior features or how the vehicles run. Reading list, timeline, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Bolt: Gearhead Garage titles: Dirt Bikes, Funny Cars, Lowriders, Muscle Cars, Top Fuel Dragsters, and Hydroplanes.

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(3) PS Illustrated by Edwardian Taylor. Colorful, energetic illustrations depict a small red racecar struggling to win a race. Spirited rhymes and sound words make this ode to car-racing suited for reading aloud ("SLIP! SLAM! SQUEAL! SOAR! / Through the tunnel! Thunder! Roar!"). A surprise ending reveals it's been little boy Maxwell's imaginative backyard play all along, and there's no doubt as to which car will ultimately win.

Reviewer: Rebecca Kirshenbaum

(4) 4-6 Macy explores the intersection of automotive history and women's rights in this image-packed volume. An overview of the rise of the personal automobile focuses on women's access to cars, while interspersed accounts of early motor races spotlight talented female drivers. Macy maintains an entertainingly upbeat tone throughout, but oversized sidebars pad this slim book with too much tangential trivia. Reading list, websites. Ind.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(3) K-3 Stuffed toys embark on a friendly automotive race in this imaginative large-trim picture book. Muth's loose and flowing watercolors are well suited to both his lanky-limbed racers and the bucolic Italian countryside they travel through. Mama Lion generously surrenders her and companion Tigey's victory to the panda mechanics who did them a favor--a sweet ending to a pleasing competition.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(3) 4-6 Alternator Books: Pro Sports Stats series. Colorful graphs galore highlight past and present statistics of the star players and top teams in six action-packed sports. In addition to the mind-boggling numbers and splashy graphics, the books also touch on unique features of each sport, how coaches use stats to improve a team's performance, and how statistics have generated public interest in computerized fantasy sports. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Alternator Books: Pro Sports Stats titles: Auto Racing Super Stats, Baseball Super Stats, Basketball Super Stats, Football Super Stats, Hockey Super Stats, and Soccer Super Stats.

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(4) K-3 Pig in a Wig Book series. "What this story needs is a pig in a wig, / rushing to her car, / dashing into place, / ready to start the cross-country race." As in other series entries, sentences stretch across multiple pages, giving brand-new readers plenty of space to decode. Pig's facial expressions and shifting visual angles ratchet up the drama, but the race's outcome is a bit of a dud.

Reviewer: Rebecca Fox

(3) 4-6 Edge Books: Wild Moments of Motorsports series. While describing the excitement of each motor sport, Weber also recounts the dangers by presenting--without sensationalizing--a variety of life-threatening accidents that have occurred. Action-packed, captioned color photos complement a text that explains accident details and how drivers reacted. Sidebars noting unusual facts of the sport are sprinkled throughout, and new vocabulary is defined at the bottom of pages. Reading list. Glos., ind. Review covers these Edge Books: Wild Moments of Motorsports titles: Wild Moments of Stock Car Racing and Wild Moments on Dirt Bikes.

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(4) PS What's Inside? series. These simplistic Macaulay-esque visual surveys of five different planes, race cars, submarines, tanks, and trains feature each vehicle in back-to-back double-page spreads. Two lines of large-print text (inadequately) introduce each vehicle beside an appealing color drawing showing the vehicle in action; the second spread consists solely of a detailed cutaway diagram with three important parts labeled. Glos., ind. Review covers these What's Inside? titles: Planes, Race Cars, Submarines, Tanks, and Trains.

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(3) YA Cassica and Shiara race cars in their backwater town in hopes of qualifying for the cutthroat Widowmaker race. Winners are transported from the deprivation of ruined Earth to the luxury of orbiting city Olympus--but winning and the subsequent fame have a price. This is an exciting tale of friendship, racing, and the lure of celebrity anchored by two strong, relatable female leads.

Reviewer: Jessica Bushore

(3) PS Illustrated by Dave Mottram. "The zooming has stopped. The sun's almost set. / A race car is tired. He's wringing with sweat." So begins a race car's post-race wind-down, which includes a bath (car wash), food (oil change), and finally sleep. This amiable book, which features vivid, chunky illustrations suggesting Pixar animation stills, will scratch the same itch as Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Underdog Rod (a dog) longs to defeat Shelly Turtle, the perennial winner of the Pickleberry Grand Prix. Unfortunately, his oddball hot rod designs just don't work. He perseveres, however, and with his modified lawnmower he heroically rescues Shelly from a near-crash and wins the trophy for them both. The cartoon illustrations, featuring quirky animal-driven hot rods, are a good match for the jokey wordplay.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) YA After witnessing her boyfriend's murder, privileged Frankie is too traumatized to identify the killer. Frankie can't escape her past after switching from private to public school where she's introduced to illegal drag racing--and to Marco, a sexy, tattooed criminal with a heart of gold. Garcia depicts class differences and car-racing culture aptly, but Marco is a bland love interest for this intense, star-crossed romance.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald