My Bike

Starred review from December 15, 2014
Barton (My Car, 2001; My Bus, 2014) wheels out another conveyance-but sends this one rolling past a set of escalating surprises to a high-wire climax.Following introductions and a view of his bicycle with its major parts labeled, Tom climbs aboard and pedals off "to work." He sets up expectations of a perfectly ordinary ride by passing predictable parades of trucks, then buses, then cars and finally "lots of people." These are knocked askew as successive page turns show him going on to pass...monkeys, then acrobats, then caged tigers and lions. His commute finishing at a tent, Tom then steps inside to don a loudly decorated "uniform," paint his face with clown makeup, climb a ladder and go "to work // on my unicycle. / Look! No hands!" Rendered in saturated colors with thick, slightly wobbly digital strokes, the illustrations are characteristically simple enough to decipher easily either close up or at a distance. Lines of equally legible text are printed in a bold sans serif, split into short phrases and printed against sharply contrasting backgrounds. A natural for group storytimes, though plenty of single tots will enjoy seeing Tom's seemingly quotidian world suddenly transformed. (Picture book. 2-4)

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December 1, 2014

PreS-Gr 1-In this tale of a boy and his bike, Tom rides past cars, trucks, and buses to his place of employment: a circus, where he dons face paint and becomes a clown. Barton once more shows great intuition for what appeals to children. The book is brimming with elements that will keep kids turning pages: crowds of people, highways crammed with vehicles, a diagram of bike parts, a circus that includes elephants and cavorting monkeys, and-an Easter egg for fans-some old friends from previous Barton books making appearances. Brightly colored, flat, digitally created illustrations have the joyfully childlike quality and soothing repetitiveness of his My Bus (2014) and My Car (2001, both HarperCollins). Though simple (a face is depicted with two circles for eyes and a semicircle for a mouth), these cheery images contain enough detail to catch the attention of very young readers, who will enjoy pointing out the single cat sitting among a large group of people watching Tom perform or a mother scolding her daughter outside the circus tent. The accessible, short sentence structure ("I put on my uniform." "I put on my makeup."), coupled with a large font, gives this book a wide audience. It is an ideal option for storytime and potentially a primer for those making their first forays into independent reading. A delight.-Mahnaz Dar, School Library Journal

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 15, 2015
Preschool *Starred Review* In the opening pages of this brightly illustrated picture book, Tom introduces himself and his sturdy green bicycle. One double-page spread features the bike alone and labels parts such as the handlebars, chain, pedals, and spokes. Riding his bike to work, Tom pedals down the bike lane, passing trucks, buses, cars, and people, and monkeys / and acrobats / and tigers and lions / and elephants. Whaaaat? Putting on his clown uniform and makeup, Tom enters the big top and climbs a tower to a tightrope, where he rides a unicycle for the admiring circus crowd. This picture book is pleasing in its simplicity and attention to detail. Created digitally, the artwork is reminiscent of children's paintings in its broad lines, startling colors, and simplified shapes, while in some pictures, Barton suggests motion with a few squiggles on the bike's wheels and creates a sense of depth through the overlapping of forms and subtle differences in size. With just a bit more plot than Barton's My Car (2001) and My Bus (2014), a surprising diversion toward the circus, and a pleasing twist back to cycles at the end, this picture book will please fans of the previous two books and young bike-lovers as well.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2015
Primary colors, simple shapes, and brief text introduce Tom, who is riding his bicycle to work. The pictures and then the text (he sees "monkeys / and acrobats / and tigers...") gradually reveal Tom's destination--with a finishing twist. Throughout this preschooler-perfect picture book, Barton displays awareness of and respect for his audience.

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

Starred review from May 1, 2015
This latest installment in Barton's transportation series (My Car, rev. 11/01; My Bus, rev. 3/14) may be the best one yet. Which is saying a lot. With bright primary colors, simple bold shapes, and the briefest of texts, Barton introduces Tom, who is riding his bicycle to work. On the way, / I pass trucks / and buses / and lots of cars First in the pictures (a truck with the word circus on its side; circus tents in the distance, and then up close) and then in the text ( and monkeys / and acrobats / and tigers / and lions / and elephants ), Barton gradually reveals Tom's destination. Of course, just when readers think they've figured everything out, Barton adds a finishing twist -- integrated so naturally, and with a visual hint provided from the very beginning (see Tom's backpack). Throughout, Barton displays awareness of and respect for his audience: from topic to storytelling approach (note the simplicity and clarity with which Barton introduces not only Tom but also his bicycle, on a double-page spread labeling each part); from the brisk, compelling pacing to the matter-of-fact inclusion of people of all colors and genders and sizes. Page turns are masterful, propelled by the anticipatory unfolding text and, visually, by Tom himself as he rides his bike ever forward, waving as he goes. Look! No hands! Tom, it turns out, is a captivating and first-rate entertainer; so is the creator of this preschooler-perfect picture book. martha v. parravano

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