School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Little Blue Truck rides in rhyme again, this time carrying crates of lettuce to a metropolitan market. His bug-eyed headlights show appreciation for the city views, as well as discomfort when the faster-paced vehicles harass him. From a double-decker bus to the mayor's limousine, traffic irritably jams into a crunch intensified by the limo engine's demise. The portly, gray-haired mayor uses Little Blue as a podium, instructing citizens to follow the truck's advice to travel "one at a time." The resulting courtesy creates a smooth flow, even when a marching band joins the line. Everyone cheers for the little truck, who leads the way with the mayor as his passenger. McElmurry's gouache scenes are spot-on. Simple compositions in calming indigo and cream in the country starkly contrast with the jam-packed city scenes where a crush of buildings barely shows the sky. The urbanites are a rich mix of ethnicity and purpose: coffee drinkers, construction workers, dog walkers, briefcase carriers, they all pound the pavement. The tale is a fine illustration for classes studying urban and rural settings, and the simple plot is a treat for even very young listeners.-Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
This sequel to Little Blue Truck brings the rustic pickup truck to a busy cityscape where Little Blue is dwarfed by towering yet cozy buildings and jostled by the frantic pace of traffic ("Swish! Swash! Swoosh! went a big street sweeper, hollering 'Hey! Better move, little beeper!' "). But Blue's diplomacy keeps things running smoothly: "You might be fast and I might be slow, but one at a time is the way to go." It's in the fusion of the old-fashioned with the modern-eclectic-one man in the crowd listens to an iPod-that the book's artistry shines. Ages 3-7. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
