I just pulled Locomotive by Brian Floca off the “new” shelf at our local library. The minute I saw the endpapers, I knew I had to check it out!
But it’s not really “new.” Joanna Marple of Miss Marple’s Musings gave this book an outstanding review back in November of 2013. And yes, it’s a Caldecott Medal book, but I’d like to give it another plug, it is just soooo fabulous!
“The hours and miles roll by. The country opens, opens wide, empty as an ocean. Smell the switchgrass and the bluestem, hot beneath the sun. Here the bison used to roam, by the hundreds, by the millions. Here the Cheyenne lived, and the Pawnee and Arapaho. Here covered wagons used to crawl, foot by foot, mile by mile, heading into the West. The railroad and the men who built it— they have changed it all.”Readers learn much more than straight facts about the railroad. They get context and information that may send them in other directions. What is switchgrass and bluestem? What happened to the bison? Who are the Cheyenne, Pawnee and Arapaho? Inquiring minds want to know!
The language is lyrical, the information extensive and well-presented, and the illustrations sublime. And then there’s the back matter: Under “Sources,” the author writes, “One could fill a boxcar—maybe a freight train—with books written about the railroad in America.” I think the author read them all and culled the most juicy tidbits to fill the pages of this immensely fascinating book.
Although it’s also available as an eBook, I would highly recommend the hard copy. Readers will want to touch these lovely pages. Enjoy!
Title: Locomotive
Author/illustrator: Brian Floca
Ages: 4-11
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Pub date: 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4169-9415-2
Jilanne Hoffmann 
Thanks for the recommendation, Jilanne. My husband’s great-grandfather was a conductor on the railroad in Pennsylvania. This looks like a great addition to the grandchildren’s Christmas presents! xoxoM
Yes! Yes! Yes! They will love it! Especially since you have steam in your bloodlines. 😀
Thanks for the heartfelt praise. I guess I’d better get my caboose over to the library.
Yes, set your caboose loose in the library. 😀 Thanks for stopping by!
It certainly deserves many plugs!
He put so much time and energy and love into this book, it deserves as much publicity as it can get! Thanks for stopping by!
I’m starting to feel guilty about the lightweight fiction novel I’m presently reading (“This is Where I Leave You”). Feel like I should be devouring something more substantial. 😉
I think you should enjoy whatever you’re reading. “Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t.” Applies to more than just candy bars. 😀
🙂
You got my interest with the maps…I gravitate to maps and lead wherever they take me. 😀 I am a touchy-feely girl, too…must be able to turn pages. 😀
I think you’d like it. It just looks and feels good in the hands. Your library is only a stone’s throw away. What’s taking you so long to get there? 😀
Lovely review, thank you for sharing this exceptional story. Loved the detail flaps you’ve shown us. Thank you!
Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have the opportunity to check the book out. The author/illustrator did an amazing job.
This is a great one, Jilanne! I love the language, and the way so many details like the bluestem are included – such nice touches!
I agree. There’s so much in these pages. A true work of art! Thanks for dropping by!
This is a fun one. This makes me want to check it out again. I love the “new” shelf at one of our libraries, as I always find good books there.
I’ve been spending a lot of time combing through the “new” shelves. So much to read!
This looks like an amazing book! I love when there is so much detail to the illustrations that it helps the story. 🙂
The illustrations are fascinating. I have looked at them for a long time, and have been discovering all kinds of things that I never knew. It’s really cool! Thanks for stopping by, Erik!
This is such a wonderful book! I really loved it when I read it. Great review.
Yay! You love it, too! Thanks for stopping by.
It looks like such a beautiful and lyrical book. I will make a stop at my library and see if it’s on the shelves…
Please do! Even if it’s just for a quick browse while you’re on your way to the adult fiction. It’s amazing how much I’ve learned while reading children’s nonfiction picture books. And they’re so much more interesting than the older, didactic ones written with so little style.
Looks like so much fun, and something my son would have loved when he was younger. I tried to find that other book in the library — Nurse, Soldier, Spy — and to my horror, they didn’t have it! So, I requested it. Hopefully, they will deem it worthy enough to purchase. If not, I’ll tell them to talk to you about it. 🙂
Just give me five minutes with your librarian, and I’ll have them ordering all kinds of awesome books. 😀
Seriously, “Nurse, Soldier, Spy” is a must for any school/public library. And her story needs to be written for the big screen. I know about a zillion people who would go see it. And probably just as many actresses who would love to star in the film. Talk about a meaty role!!