Little Tug
Little Tug is having an identity crisis. The tall ship is taller. The speedboat is faster. The ocean liner is bigger. But when each of his friends is in trouble, Little Tug comes to the rescue (“he pulls, he pushes, and guides the boats to safety”), and each repays his kindness in his or her own unique way. The straightforward story unfolds across the course of a single day, beginning at dawn and ending at dusk. Savage expresses this arc with careful attention to color and hue, sea and sky transforming from dark navys and grays to purples and pinks to a bright blue and back again. The anthropomorphized vessels and crisp, flat backgrounds recall an earlier era of illustration, which adds a vintage charm to the outing. The spiral storytelling and stylized illustration combine for a book that is both a winning read-aloud and a deceptively simple exploration of individuality perfectly suited for its target toddler audience. Preschool-Kindergarten. --Thom Barthelmess