Review by Booklist Review
Little Bulldozer is excited about celebrating his special day with a party. But, as he trundles from one construction vehicle to another on the job site, he is dismayed to find everyone is too busy working to share his enthusiasm. As disappointment grows, his blade droops a little more and his movements slow from zooming to crawling. Rohmann uses block prints, with three plates for each illustration, employing a printmaking system that results in clear and colorful black-framed pictures with images outlined in thick black lines. The silhouette of a large city skyline is shown in the background while the construction site and a variety of trucks are close-up. Action verbs liked rolled, rumbled, rattled, and grumbled add zest to the tale of the little vehicle's big day and its eventual happy ending. Repetition throughout will be welcomed by emerging readers, and observant children will begin to identify what the vehicles are constructing. Match this with Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site, by Sherri Duskey Rinker (2011), and make young vehicle-lovers very happy.--Owen, Maryann Copyright 2015 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The team behind Oh, No! (2012) imagines a construction-site birthday celebration that ends with a multi-story surprise. Wide-eyed Bulldozer bumps and bounces over the site, eager for the bigger, older machines to share in his birthday excitement. "Guess what today is!" Bulldozer asks Digger. But to them, it's just another day: "Today is a scooping day," Digger replies. "And a sifting day," adds Dump Truck. "Sifting... sifting... sifting." Using relief printing, Rohmann surrounds bright, gauzy fields of color with warm black lines, giving each truck faithful detailing and winning expressiveness. With each disappointing interaction, Bulldozer's blade droops ever lower, but at the end of the day whistles blow ("Feeef!" "Toot!"), and Crane lifts an enormous birthday cake from the construction site pit, complete with glowing candles. Now readers can go back over the pages and see how Bulldozer's birthday surprise was made (Digger was moving sprinkles, and Crane was lifting candles). The power of giant construction equipment makes a fine vehicle (ahem) to convey the outsize excitement of a special day. Ages 4-7. Agent: Ethan Ellenberg, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Fleming and Rohmann team up for their second picture book in celebration of Bulldozer's birthday. He zooms across the construction site in joyous anticipation of his big day only to discover that every construction truck he greets is too busy to acknowledge anything more than the jobs that need to be done. As surely as the scooping, sifting, and stirring prevails, Bulldozer's blade droops lower and lower as the day passes without recognition. When the construction whistle signals the end of the work day with a big "Wooot!" all hope is lost until a "Feeef!" and a "Toot! Tweet! Ah-wooo!" signal the start of a surprise birthday party. Rohmann's signature relief (block) prints are a perfect complement to Fleming's earnest tale. The bold black lines of the machines and construction site are balanced by the black framed pages and offset by the trucks' primary colors and variable backgrounds in blues and white. Chunky details, especially the trucks' eyes and the rubble they're tending, make the story come alive. The heavyweight matte paper and relief lettering on the dust jacket add satisfying tactile details to the engaging text and playful illustrations. VERDICT This masterfully crafted story will become a favorite read-aloud choice.-Lynn Van Auken, Oak Bluffs School, Oak Bluffs, MA (c) Copyright 2015. 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
On his "big day," Bulldozer can't wait to invite his friends to his party: "Guess what today is!" The other construction vehicles appear too preoccupied with work to guess. "No friends. No party," sniffs Bulldozer. Of course, there is a party; everyone's secretly been constructing a giant birthday cake. Engaging text will keep story-hour audiences invested; block-print illustrations feature trucks with loads of personality. (c) Copyright 2015. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Bulldozer feels forgotten on his birthday, until a surprise brightens his day. It's Bulldozer's big day, and he's brimming with excitement. Bouncing across the construction site, the jubilant vehicle seeks out his friends. But Digger, Dump Truck, and the others seem too preoccupied to notice. (Participles are the order of the day: "scooping," "sifting," "mashing," "lifting," and more.) When the construction whistle blows, the deflated bulldozer starts to drag himself away, but then toots fill the air. Horns and engines resound as Crane hoists a giant cake up from a massive pit, much to Bulldozer's delight. Action-packed pages and playful onomatopoeia will draw the construction-obsessed in, while the emotive little bulldozer, so perfectly personified, will capture the hearts and empathy of all. Fleming's seemingly simple text is accessible, teachable, and loads of fun. As in Oh, No! (2012), she and Rohmann team up to great effect. Clever use of angles and perspective emphasize Bulldozer's emotions of disappointment and joy, and the block prints have a warmth and authenticity that both entertain and endear Bulldozer to readers. Matte pages and an embossed cover add to its charm. A winning addition to the construction-vehicle shelf. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
