Review by Booklist Review
Ages 3^-7. With rainbow candy colors and an impish sense of humor, Hillenbrand rings slyly amusing changes on an old chestnut. Inspired by the ditty "Down by the station, early in the morning," he posits a zoo train acting as transport for baby animals headed for the children's zoo. The engineer picks up a calf "down by the elephants / early in the morning," a pup by the seals, a joey by the kangaroos, and so on, adding the appropriate animal noises to the verse. However, that isn't all that is going on. Also on board is an animal keeper, in bush hat and jacket, sitting primly in a chair on the flat car (her umbrella hanging on the back of her chair), reading a book and being teased by a Curious George^-like monkey as baby animals pile up around her. When all the passengers are safely ensconced in the zoo, the children arrive: a multicultural group including a child carrying his "blankie" and another who uses a wheelchair. The last spread, which is wordless, shows children, animals, and instructors amusing themselves in a very sociable way. The child with the blanket snoozes in a tree house with a koala cub that carries a blanket of its own. Cheerful and inviting, this is worth multiple readings: a joyful noise, indeed. --GraceAnne A. DeCandido
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Hillenbrand's (The Golden Sandal) whimsical interpretation of a familiar song offers preschoolers a ticket to ride on an enjoyable excursion through a children's zoo. As an engineer makes repeated stops along the tracks, baby animals board a rainbow-tinted train. Each adds his or her own sound to the cumulative refrain: "Puff, puff,/ Toot, toot,/ Off we go!" from "Thrump, thrump" for the elephant calf to "Flip, flop" for the seal pup, building up a symphonic chorus that begs for audience participation. Hillenbrand shapes the simple song into a full-bodied story with a visual narrative populated by characters such as a kangaroo joey that jumps rope and a monkey that rescues a woman in the alligator pond via an upturned umbrella. The artwork foreshadows the creatures to come (e.g., a sign pointing to "Seal Island" appears on the spread before the seal pup's introduction), and the lyrics point up the unusual names of the animal offspring. Softly shaded but brightly colored, Hillenbrand's mixed media illustrations embrace an abundance of droll detail and gently outline landscapes in which the sky gradually changes from the pink hues of early morning to a glorious blue studded with cotton-candy clouds. All aboard for fun. Ages 3-6. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-In this sprightly picture-book version of a favorite song, a train rides around the zoo picking up baby animals. With each new passenger, a new sound is added to the classic verse: "Puff, puff,/Toot, toot,/Off we go!" An elephant calf adds a "Thrump, thrump"; a flamingo chick, a "Peep, peep," etc. As the song glides merrily along, the bright mixed-media illustrations tell another story: while the gamekeeper sits onboard trying to read, a small monkey and penguin get into all sorts of mischief, from walking a tightrope between the cars to falling into the alligator pond. All ends happily, however, as the animals arrive at the zoo just in time to greet a group of children on a class trip. Between the bouncy text and the motion-filled pictures, this is a story that just keeps chugging along. Hillenbrand pays attention to detail: a red balloon released in the first spread soars through the rest of the book, and visual details on each spread give clues to the next creature to be introduced. Pastel tones convey the exuberant feel of a sunny morning, and the excitement of a field trip for both the animal and human children. The music score is appended. This twist on an old favorite combines sunny illustrations, playful humor, and appealing animals, making it a surefire selection for storytime success.-Kathleen M. Kelly MacMillan, Carroll County Public Library, Eldersburg, MD (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Preschool) An early morning train ride is the occasion for a spirited escapade in this cheery cumulative story based on the traditional old song. Beginning with the lines ""Down by the station / early in the morning,"" the engineer and his passenger, a woman dressed in explorer garb, make several stops for their baby animal riders, and as each new animal boards, another sound is added to the ""puff, puff / toot, toot"" of the engine's refrain. The brightly-colored, mixed-media illustrations on glossy pages endow the animals with distinct personalities. A shy young panda clutches his security blanket as he waits for the train to arrive. While his mother watches anxiously, a tiger cub blithely jumps aboard and is soon frolicking with the panda. There's a brief moment of concern when the seal and penguin dive into an alligator-infested pool-although it's hard to imagine any child being frightened by these smiling creatures, and the renegades are rescued soon enough. Sharp-eyed preschoolers will note the visual clues hinting at which animal will be picked up next, and those who can read will notice the signs announcing the same. The train arrives at its destination, the children's zoo, followed by a schoolbus full of-what else?-children, and everyone disembarks for a day of play. An enjoyable, participatory adventure for the nursery school set, with the music for the song on the last page. n.v. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Hillenbrand takes license with the familiar song (the traditional words and music are reproduced at the end) to tell an enchanting story about baby animals picked up by the train and delivered to the children's zoo. The full-color drawings are transportingly jolly, while the catchy refrain'``See the engine driver pull his little lever'''is certain to delight readers. Once the baby elephant, flamingo, panda, tiger, seal, and kangaroo are taken to the zoo by the train, the children'representing various ethnic backgrounds, and showing one small girl in a wheelchair'arrive. This is a happy book, filled with childhood exuberance. (Picture book. 3-6)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
