Children's Book Reviews
Page One of TwoBig Blue Engine by Ken Wilson-Max
Cartwheel Books, May 2000Board Book, 14 pages
Ages 3-6
ISBN: 0439136555.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Ken Wilson-Max's interactive board books
series are always popular with children.
In Big, Blue Engine, children can interact with
the story by pulling or pushing tabs to answer the phone,
pull down the handle on the switcher,
start up the engine, hook up the freight car, ride over
bridges and through tunnels, unload freight,
dock a huge ship and return to the station
for the night. The pull tabs are sturdy, so this is
an interactive board book that should last a while.
The colors are vibrant and the illustrations of the
trains, tracks and background are eye-catching.
Any little train lover will adore Big, Blue Engine.
Big Silver Space Shuttle by Ken Wilson-Max
Cartwheel Books, May 2000.Board Book, 14 pages
Ages 3-6
ISBN: 0439136563.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Ken Wilson-Max has outdone himself with this
wonderful, interactive board book which follows
the space shuttle from takeoff to landing.
The story starts with the familiar countdown to
liftoff: "The countdown begins…3-2-1…Liftoff!"
The gantry can be raised, and the shuttle on the bright
red rocket booster shoots skyward with a touch.
The shuttle leaves Earth's atmosphere, releases the
fuel tank and rocket boosters and settles into orbit.
Children can work the computer (which has a nifty
message on it from Mission Control), work the
orbital maneuvering system, activate the satellite, and
then head for home. The landing features a pull-out
tab to open the big, red parachute. The technical jargon
and the beautifully rendered space illustrations elevate this
board book far above most other interactive books.
After reading this book a few hundred times, don't be
surprised if your child annouces that he or she
is going to grow up to be a starship captain.
Highly recommended.
Children's Book Reviews
Page One | Page Two
Return to the July 2000 issue of The IWJ.
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