I'll admit that it was the cover on today's read which caught my attention. I do love my covers. The artwork carries an original direction and promises details and atmosphere at the same time. Now, whether or not this makes a good picture book...well, that's why I'll need to take a peek at it. But it wasn't only the cover which drew me in.
At a second glance, I noticed the title. How often have you seen a picture book about subways? It could be a fun theme and is definitely not one often handled. So, this promises to be an original read in several aspects.
Get ready to ride because we're going on a trip!
MY SUBWAY RUNS
by James Gladstone
Illustrated by Pierre Pratt
Groundwood Books
Picture Book
32 pages
ages 4 to 8
COMING FEBRUARY 3rd!!!
For a young child, a subway journey is an eye-opening city-life experience. A story-poem from award-winning creators James Gladstone and Pierre Pratt.
The journey begins with the roar of the subway from the street above, as the child and their mom descend to the dilapidated platform below. The child feels a rush of air as the train pulls in, people stepping on board just in time! Sights and sounds include the dark tunnel and screeching wheels, then the train suddenly breaks out into bright daylight high above the city. All the while, the child takes in the passengers around them — people on their way to work, kids going to school, and “the sleeper,” whom no one else seems to see. At Union Station, the child accompanies their mom from restaurant to restaurant as she looks for work, before they journey home.
Author James Gladstone’s lyrical story-poem and Pierre Pratt’s illustrations, rich in detail and humor, make this companion book to My Winter City (illustrated by Gary Clement) at once delightful and thought-provoking.
Correlates to the Common Core States Standards in English Language
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.1 : With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.1 : Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3 : Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details
The journey begins with the roar of the subway from the street above, as the child and their mom descend to the dilapidated platform below. The child feels a rush of air as the train pulls in, people stepping on board just in time! Sights and sounds include the dark tunnel and screeching wheels, then the train suddenly breaks out into bright daylight high above the city. All the while, the child takes in the passengers around them — people on their way to work, kids going to school, and “the sleeper,” whom no one else seems to see. At Union Station, the child accompanies their mom from restaurant to restaurant as she looks for work, before they journey home.
Author James Gladstone’s lyrical story-poem and Pierre Pratt’s illustrations, rich in detail and humor, make this companion book to My Winter City (illustrated by Gary Clement) at once delightful and thought-provoking.
Correlates to the Common Core States Standards in English Language
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.1 : With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.1 : Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3 : Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details
MY TIDBITS
Each scene comes to life and lets the reader realize how interesting a ride on a subway can be.
A little boy heads out with his mother to take the subway as she searches for a job. He pays close attention as they wait for the subway to arrive, enter it, and ride it through the city and over the landscape beyond.
This is a straight-forward read on the plot end and doesn't hold any twists and turns...outside of the subway's path, that is. But this is by no means a boring read. From the very first scene of the boy putting on his coat to him entering the subway with his mom, every moment draws in and captures the attention. The illustrations are busy and allow the bustle to come across in its chaotic bliss. At the same time, this allows the details of each individual and situation to seep through. Listeners/readers are invited to let their eyes search and roam as they pick up daily details here and there. There's personality, diversity, quirks, and curiosities which fill life but are often overlooked, since we can't, usually, take snap-shots and let each moment completely sink in. These pages open up to a little more mindfulness and hold wonder as well.
The illustrations carry a distinct, artistic flair, and this also helps open them up with a hint of imagination while staying planted in reality. (I had to smile at the very winded hairstyles whenever the subway pulls in or leaves.) The text works its way in and around the scenes with just a few lines each time to make it clear what is happening. For adults using it as a read-aloud, it might be helpful to glance through to see where the text is beforehand, but it does flow nicely and keeps listeners' attentions the entire way through.
It's one of those picture books, which invites to gazing and offers tons to discover along the way.
And here they are...
JAMES GLADSTONE is the author of many highly acclaimed picture books, including When Planet Earth Was New: A Short History of Our Planet’s Long Journey, illustrated by Katherine Diemert (Norma Fleck Award finalist); Turtle Pond, illustrated by Karen Reczuch (Norma Fleck Award); My Winter City, illustrated by Gary Clement (Globe 100 List); and Journey Around the Sun: The Story of Halley’s Comet, illustrated by Yaara Eshet (Sheila Barry Best Canadian Picture Book of the Year finalist). James lives in Toronto, Ontario.
PIERRE PRATT has illustrated more than eighty books for children. He has won the Golden Apple and Plaque at the Biennial of Illustrations in Bratislava, the UNICEF Prize in Bologna and a Totem at the Montreuil Salon du Livre in France. Other awards include the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, the Governor General’s Award (three times) and the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award (twice). He has also been nominated for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. Pierre lives in Montreal, Quebec and Lisbon, Portugal.
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