Review by Booklist Review
In bold, rough-textured collages composed of cut and torn paper and bits of string, Steggall depicts a succession of heavy duty construction vehicles rolling onto a site to demolish, bulldoze, dig, dump, lift, and level. The rhymed text, too, rolls and rumbles, often in rumpled lines: The tippers are coming! / The tippers are coming, / they're topped up to the brim. / They tremble along / and trundle about, / then tip up and slip the whole load out. Ultimately, the muddy patch of ground is transformed into a tidy suburban neighborhood of generic, nearly identical stucco houses, and the multicultural hard-hat crew gives way to an equally diverse set of furniture movers, and then families of various ethnicities in brightly colored cars. Despite running a very well-traveled road, the project's all-human cast does offer a change of pace from similar vehicles populated by cats (Construction Kitties, 2013), dogs (Dig, Dogs, Dig, 2013), dinosaurs (Bang! Boom! Roar!, 2012), and action figures (Construction Countdown, 2004). A treat for little lovers of those big machines.--Peters, John Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Continuing in the vehicular theme of her previous books, including Red Car Red Bus and Rattle and Rap, Steggall celebrates the transformation of a dilapidated plot of land into a thriving community. Wreckers are first on the scene: "they whack and they wallop and wham! Flinging and slinging their weight around, they bash old buildings to the ground." Steggall doesn't neglect the manpower behind the horsepower, though. Planners "with laptops and levels and lists" are next to arrive, and her detailed paper-collage scenes are busy with activity as a mostly male workforce in plaid jackets, orange vests, baseball caps, and hardhats drives trucks onto the work site, spreads concrete, lays bricks, and paves roads. Her textured papers are equally adept at portraying the manmade (vehicles big and small, tidy newly constructed homes) and the natural (stones, mud, foliage), and the narrative's ongoing riffs on the exclamation of the title ("Bulldozers are coming! Bulldozers are coming, with bold and brilliant blades") create an infectious sense of excitement about the unfolding demolition and construction. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-The wreckers are coming, and "they whack and they wallop and wham! Flinging and slinging their weight around, they bash old buildings to the ground." Then rebuilding begins, and each spread depicts a step in the process as houses take shape against the backdrop of a city skyline and the changing seasons. There is much to look at with each page turn: tiny figures walking or biking on a path in the background and the huge machines and workers in the foreground gradually bringing the residences to life. The last page shows people moving in, planting trees, and getting settled. This is a lively, well-designed addition to the many books on construction for young enthusiasts, distinguished by its brilliant creative collages and an imaginative, descriptive text that's full of fun, alliterative phrases.-Judith Constantinides, formerly at East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA (c) Copyright 2013. 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 Kirkus Book Review
All kinds of bruising vehicles have a part in creating a new housing development in this muscular import from the U.K. First comes the big red wrecker, its ball swinging to bash the old buildings to the ground. Then the planners come, to measure and mark, followed by the bulldozers, who "shave and shift and shove all day." The type goes across the page in various directions and routes, sometimes bold and even bolder, from tiny to enormous. Diggers and tippers (dump trucks) are next, to finish the job of preparing the ground, then cement mixers, to lay the concrete foundation. Then sturdy trucks show up with cement blocks and other building materials. Busy builders go to work with hard hats and hammers and hods, and the buildings start to rise. Some materials need a crane. Steamrollers help smooth out all the bumpy bits. Before long, the trucks coming to the site are moving vans, full of furniture and the other belongings of all the families that will be moving into these immaculate new homes. Steggall's use of color makes stars of her machines; the buildings and ground, with scant greenery, are in earth tones, while gleaming bright vehicles--in orange and bold yellow and blue--really pop in her textured collages. Her text has lots of phonic and onomatopoeic crunch as well. Perfect for the very young truck fanatic. (Picture book. 4-7) ]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
