Fire Chief Fran

K-Gr 2--Less than 10 percent of firefighters are women. Even fewer are fire chiefs. Readers can count Fire Chief Fran, a Black woman, among that small, illustrious number. In this book, Fire Chief Fran and her crew tackle many incidents during one busy day in a small town. A cafe catches fire, a puppy gets stuck in a fence, a tree branch falls. There is little downtime. Firefighters must put out fires, perform rescues, and administer first aid. Ashman's text is serviceably crisp, but a few rhythmic blips will trip up readers performing the book aloud. A highlight and saving grace is how the same verse repeats when the alarm bells go off throughout the day. This repetition, much like the clanging of the alarm bell, does a great job alerting readers to an emergency. Carpenter's illustrations are digitally enhanced acrylic paintings, using a predominantly primary color palette: red fire truck, yellow turnout gear, navy blue shirts. In addition to Fire Chief Fran, other firefighters are depicted with a variety of skin tones, genders, and ages. Back matter provides a comprehensive look at firefighting as a profession, including the statistics. Ashman concisely answers many questions young readers may ask, including how quickly firefighters must get ready and what they do when they're not responding to emergency calls. VERDICT A must-have for all community helper collections.--Chance Lee Joyner

Fire Chief Fran leads a crew of firefighters, and a trusty firehouse dog, through a busy shift of wide-ranging calls, linked by Ashman's rousing, rhyming refrain: "Lights begin flashing, and--CLANG!--the bells blast./ They leap into action--/ they need to move FAST!" A kinetic early spread captures this speedy response, as the entire crew, portrayed with varying skin tones and dressed in bright yellow turnout gear, climbs aboard the fire truck, while one more crew member slides down the fire station pole. Back at the firehouse, Fran, shown with brown skin, runs a tight ship--supervising equipment maintenance, putting the firefighters through fitness and disaster drills--but also takes pleasure in seeing the crew get some well-deserved downtime. Carpenter's striking, digitally finished acrylic art combines a primary-colors palette with tissue-paper texturing; the predominantly double-page, single-plane images vividly convey a sense of space--whether a firehouse kitchen or a rain-drenched street bisected by a fallen tree--as well as the efficient collaboration of a tight-knit team. Together with its detailed, q&a-style afterword, it's a first-rate portrayal of first responders. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)