Language Arts - English Language, Children - Transportation, Children - Fiction & Literature

Let's Go for a Ride

Name: Let's Go for a Ride
Author: Maxwell Newhouse
ISBN: 9780887767487

by Maxwell Newhouse

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Overview

They make strange noises. They belch smoke. There are far too many of them. But from the very beginning, we have always been crazy about our cars. In this visual love song to a much-maligned part of our lives, Maxwell Newhouse gives us a whimsical, quirky, and very personal history of the cars he adores.

In the early days, cars were primarily a source of recreation. They shared unpaved roads with horses and wagons, and when they ran out of gas — which was often because there were few gas stations — horses had to pull them home. Driving mania soon began to shape the landscape. Cars begat gas stations, which sparked the popularity of family camping, going to the drive-in, and fast food. They even spawned bridges so that people could ford rivers in the comfort of their cars.

Maxwell Newhouse has captured their spirit perfectly. Even now, when we all try to walk, use public transit, or ride bikes, there is still something thrilling in the cry, “Let’s go for a ride!”

About the Author, Maxwell Newhouse

Maxwell Newhouse is one of Canada’s most accomplished folk artists. His work is exhibited in galleries across Canada. He is well known for his paintings of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Musical Ride, which are gathered together for the first time in his most recent book, The RCMP Musical Ride. He has illustrated three books for Tundra, including Emily Carr: At the Edge of the World, written by Jo Ellen Bogart. He lives in Cultus Lake, British Columbia.

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Editorials

Children's Literature

"Let's go for a ride" are words that still create a stir of excitement among many. Years ago, however, these same words carried a very special meaning. People's love of cars evolved just as the vehicles themselves did. At first, automobiles were a bit frightening and they had more than a few problems. Still, those people who could afford them enjoyed traveling in them just for fun. Soon, more roads were created and gasoline pumps were more plentiful. Car owners began traveling even more and as a result, campgrounds, fast-food restaurants, and drive-in movie theaters were created. This book wonderfully illustrates people's growing passion for cars, while the content effortlessly explains the social evolution of cars. Readers of all ages will get pleasure from the informative text as well as from the colorful folk art illustrations. 2006, Viking/Penguin Group, Ages 16 up.
—Denise Daley

School Library Journal

K-Gr 4-The history of the automobile and the services that emerged to support it are the subjects of this picture book by a Canadian folk artist. Twenty oil paintings and two cameos depict life on the open road from the "self-propelled motor vehicles" of the late 1800s through the "glory days" of the 1950s. A conversational, first-person narrator conveys the challenges of the early driving days, such as running out of gas and having to be rescued by horses, as well as the exciting innovations in the form of bedsheet drive-in theaters, service stations, and soapbox derbies. The use of generalizations, some of which offer little in the way of propelling the chronology, makes this a title for browsers only. The book seems to conclude in mid-century on the penultimate page where a screen in a playground reads "The End," but a final page has a nod to walking and biking as contemporary, nonpolluting alternatives. Although the lens is nostalgic and self-indulgent, the vivid colors, energetic curves and diagonals, and tilted perspectives of the compositions-not to mention hundreds of cars-will undoubtedly attract transportation buffs of various ages. For larger collections.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.