Locomotive Hardcover - 2013

All aboard! From the creator of the âÈêstunningâÈë (Booklist) Moonshot, a rich and detailed sensory exploration of AmericaâÈçs early railroads.

It is the summer of 1869, and trains, crews, and family are traveling together, riding AmericaâÈçs brand-new transcontinental railroad. These pages come alive with the details of the trip and the sounds, speed, and strength of the mighty locomotives; the work that keeps them moving; and the thrill of travel from plains to mountain to ocean.

Come hear the hiss of the steam, feel the heat of the engine, watch the landscape race by. Come ride the rails, come cross the young country!

Details

• Title Locomotive
• Author Brian Floca; Brian Floca (Illustrator)
• Binding Hardcover
• Edition First Edition
• Pages 64
• Volumes 1
• Language ENG
• Publisher Atheneum Books, New York
• Date 2013-09-03
• Illustrated Yes
• ISBN 9781416994152 / 1416994157
• Weight 1.44 lbs (0.65 kg)
• Dimensions 11.9 x 10.8 x 0.6 in (30.23 x 27.43 x 1.52 cm)
• Ages 04 to 10 years
• Grade levels P - 5
• Reading level 640
• Themes
  • Chronological Period: 1851-1899
• Library of Congress subjects Railroads - United States - History - 19th, Locomotives - United States - History - 19th
• Library of Congress Catalog Number 2012042295
• Dewey Decimal Code 385.097

"
Talk about a youth librarianâÈçs dream come true: a big new book about those ever-popular trains from a bona fide picture-book-nonfiction all-star. Striking cinematic endpapers lay the groundwork, describing the creation of the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860s. Then, in a sort of historical-fiction-meets-travelogue narrative, Floca zeroes in on one familyâÈçs journey from Omaha to San Francisco. Floca excels at juxtaposing sweeping panoramas with intimate, slice-of-life moments: here a widescreen shot of the train chugging across the Great Plains; later a vignette at a âÈêdollar for dinnerâÈë hash house (âÈêIf the chicken tastes like prairie dog, donâÈçt ask why,âÈë cautions the narrator). Varied font sizes and styles on the large pages beautifully capture the onomatopoeia (âÈêHisssssssssâÈë; âÈêhuff huff huffâÈë; âÈêchug-chug chug-chug chug-chugâÈë) of the train and the feel of the Old West. One spread finds the train precariously crossing a trestle (âÈêThe train is so heavy, the bridge is so narrow, and rickety rickety rickety!âÈë); the concluding ricketys are displayed in an appropriately jarring shadowed font alongside a picture of passengers shakingâÈ'and prayingâÈ'in their seats. Luckily, our family makes it safely to its destination: âÈêthe countryâÈçs far corners have been pulled togetherâÈöthanks to the locomotive.âÈë An authorâÈçs note and thorough discussion of the sources used are included, and donâÈçt miss the back endpapersâÈ'the steam power diagram would make David Macaulay proud."