Dig!
PreSchool-K–Digging is all in a day's work for Mr. Rally and his dog, Lightning. His projects include moving dirt and rocks on a bridge, making a drain for the rain, removing a load on the road, digging a hole for a pool in the school, and leveling a site for "a zoo, all brand new." Readers follow Mr. Rally as he gets to work, step-by-step, getting dressed, reviewing the big jobs for the day, and completing all five of them. And when each task is done, a peppy response follows and elicits young readers' recitation: "Dig up rock and dig up clay!/Dig up dirt and dig all day!/Good job, Mr. Rally!/Good job, Lightning!/Mr. Rally waves good-bye./Is all the digging done? No!" The final scene shows Mr. Rally at home, preparing his garden, and Lightning digging a hole, burying his five treasures in the yard. Earth-tone illustrations are created with watercolor and Prismacolor pencil. Although the vocabulary isn't controlled for a true early reader, the pace, repetition, and word choices make the book appropriate for beginning readers. The uncluttered art, catchy refrain, and focus on heavy machinery make it a natural for storytimes.–Marian Creamer, Children's Literature Alive, Portland, ORCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.