Drive

April 6, 2015
Designer Hatanaka follows Work: An Occupational ABC with an exploration of opposites, presented within the context of a road trip. Crisp digital graphics with a 1960s aesthetic show a wood-grain station wagon (its occupants are never revealed) piled high with camping gear as it travels past townhouses, over a suspension bridge, and across dramatically changing landscapes, from wet to dry, day to night. A variation in the horizontal framing comes in the form of a gatefold that gives a worm’s-eye view of the car before unfolding to show a bird’s-eye view of the scene below, transforming the car and landscape into abstract geometrical patterns. Eventually, the car arrives at a sleek A-frame cabin, but as with many road trips, the destination in this stylish offering is not necessarily as important as the journey. Ages 3–7.

April 1, 2015
One-word captions (and two short phrases) point out opposites of diverse sorts on a road trip through town and countryside. Between an urban "Start" and a "Finish" at a woodsy cabin, a station wagon piled high with suitcases rolls along through stylized, neatly limned settings. It goes over a long, straight suspension bridge that divides "Above" from "Below" and patterned, layered lines of mountain peaks that likewise separate "High" from "Low." It motors past "One" donkey sharing a field with "Many" (seven, plus a calf) cows, a "Young" tree sprouting beneath a rugged "Old" one, and so on. Hatanaka takes advantage of a gutter to keep "Day" from "Night," light to distinguish an "Open" shop from one that is "Closed," and a double gatefold to contrast "Worm's-Eye View" with "Bird's-Eye View." A closing visual index recapitulates the entire route. As the actual number of relevant opposites ranges from one pair of items in most scenes to nearly everything on the "Short/Long" spread, the focus seems to be more on adroit visual design than on maximizing opportunities to get a handle on the overall concept. Ramona Badescu and Benjamin Chaud's Pomelo's Opposites (2013) and Ingrid and Dieter Schubert's Opposites (2013) are just two of a plethora of recent ingenious, example-rich titles. A fine showcase for the illustrator's talents, but a thin entry in a crowded field. (Picture book. 2-4)

May 1, 2015

K-Gr 2-Digitally drawn patterns and textures, combined with muted colors, reinforce the introduced terms as readers participate in this clever journey of opposites. The conceit is that a family station wagon, packed to the hilt, is taking off on vacation. Between the opening spread labeled "start" and the concluding one dubbed "finish," children are exposed to numerous sets of opposites-standards such as "short/long," "big/small," and "in/out," as well as directional examples ("above/below") and perspective switches ("bird's-eye view/worm's-eye view"). "Winding/straight" shows the curvy road on one page, as the family drives along the straightaway on the next and a snake winds its way along the bottom of the page. "Near/far" offers viewers an up-close view of a country road with mailboxes and a rabbit in the foreground, while the station wagon is in the distance driving past a house beyond the fence line. Hatanaka's illustrations are the main attraction here. The family is never shown, and the narrative details must be inferred. However, this is an appealing, if slightly sophisticated choice for interactive reading, fostering visual literacy, and introducing mapping skills. VERDICT A great way to prepare for a road trip.-Annette Herbert, F. E. Smith Elementary School, Cortland, NY

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2015
As young children follow along on a colorful road trip, they learn about opposites. Using just two words, each spread demonstrates a pair of opposites, such as above (a car on a bridge) and below (a boat under the bridge). The digital illustrations using hand-drawn patterns and textures feel modern in style and color. A large gatefold adds more visual interest.

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)