Tonka Big Book Of Trucks Hardcover Book
PreSchool-Grade 3?Basic information and full-color illustrations introduce 40 different trucks, from backhoes to shuttle transports. Double-page spreads depict four trucks within a scene: e.g., "Building a House," "In the City," and "At the Seaport." The following spread shows each vehicle separately, with a paragraph of description. In general, this format works well enough, as readers are able to see trucks in action, along with the people who work with them, and then turn the page for details. In some cases, scale is misleading: a gantry crane and forklift are in scale in the general seaport scene, but not in the captioned illustrations that follow. Each vehicle bears the "TonkaR" logo, though they are depicted as real, working trucks in the illustrations. Like the toys, however, many are simplified: there is no exhaust pipe on the bulldozer, for instance, and not a single truck has a side-view mirror. The text is straightforward and simple, offering just enough detail for youngsters to understand the basic workings of each vehicle. Most terms are smoothly described within the text, but a few ("winch cab," "payload bay...") are not. The wide variety of equipment and pleasing format will attract young enthusiasts, though this title does not quite match the exciting visual appeal of The Big Book of Things That Go (DK, 1994) or the lively, informative text of Hope Marston's Big Rigs (Cobblehill, 1993).?Steven Engelfried, West Linn Public Library, ORCopyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.