Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #383144 in Books
• Published on: 2006-05-22
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780618563074
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-K–A colorful concept book on a subject that fascinates young readers. The brief rhyming text and precise artwork feature different types of wheels performing many jobs: Push/Pull/Pedal/Tow/Wheels help to make us go. Square vignettes offer numerous close-up examples, while single- and double-page pictures show broader scenes depicting bikes, a skateboard, a golf cart, a helicopter, a tire swing, and more. The striking collage art consists of paper cutouts that have been layered to provide dimension and enhanced by drawing and painting. The phrase, Wheels soar into the sky, is illustrated with the dramatic image of a Ferris wheel resplendent in bright primary colors and set against a starlit backdrop, perfectly capturing the thrill and function of this engineering marvel. Sometimes wheels spit and sputter is accompanied by a spread packed with a crisply hued array of cars. Puffs of smoke coming from several tailpipes indicate a traffic jam, and each unique automobile has its own passengers and details. The anticipatory quality of the rhymes and the detailed visuals will help children to guess the next word, making this a fun choice for storytime. It will also be a hit with the train- and truck-loving crowd.–Janet S. Thompson, Chicago Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
PreS-Gr. 2. This handsome, large-format picture book points out common uses of wheels in a short, rhyming text, brightly illustrated with distinctive collage illustrations. The wheels in question are mainly related to transportation and recreation, from bus to wheelchair, from skateboard to Ferris wheel. Laroche's distinctive collage compositions, created from textured papers and enhanced by painted backgrounds, demonstrate a fine sense of depth. Though effective individually, the text and artwork don't always work together; the illustration for the line "Sometimes wheels spit and sputter," for instance, shows cars and vans tightly packed in traffic. Something may be spitting and sputtering (the vehicles? the outwardly cheerful drivers?), but the wheels? Quibbles aside, teachers looking for picture books supporting units on simple machines will be happy to have such a simply written, well-illustrated picture book on hand. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

Customer Reviews

Book Review: What Do Wheels Do All Day?
In my job as a school librarian, I am occasionally faced with inquiries about what it is I do. When I began my professional life in aught 5 I was unaware of the apparent mystery surrounding my line of work. Since then I've tried to hone my pitch down to a nice litte bit of job description magic that leaves the questioner both satisfied and enlightened. I'm still working on it. In What Do Wheels Do All Day, the author sets out to accomplish a similar goal ... only with wheels.

The story is told in rhyming verse, which shimmies the reader along, describing different ways that wheels are used in everyday life. They race, they spin, they push, well, you get the idea. It is how these words match up with the illustrations that make this title a quality nonfiction choice.

Let me take a minute to talk about the artwork, because it is not your run of the mill paint and canvas-type stuff. Giles Laroche creates his scenes in cut-paper relief, which is a fancy way to say that it looks similar to the work of Steve Jenkins, but more three dimensional. Laroche also appears to be a bit of a perfectionist, adding plenty of detail that the casual reader may not notice at first peep.

So while I'm still perfecting my job description to the masses, What Do Wheels Do All Day has mankind's most important invention pretty well covered.

My Son loves this book!
My son is 20 months old and is really into cars and trucks, basically anything with wheels, and really enjoys this book! The drawings are unique too they are paper cut out style.

beautiful artwork ruined
This is a great book, with text that will appeal to toddlers and pictures adults will appreciate. Giles Laroche's cut paper artwork is amazing! The amount of personality he coaxes from cutting pieces of paper deserves to be seen.

Unfortunately, for me the illustrations were ruined by someone (hopefully not the artist) adding sloppy Photoshop work. Instead of letting the artwork speak for itself, someone with no visual acuity tried to make it look more three dimensional by adding ridiculous drop shadows. Everywhere. That person should be drowned in a sea of pixels. It is such a distraction to me that I decided to return the book rather than risk having to read it over and over.