Red Wagon

Lucy, a fox cub with a small pink hair ribbon, wants to play with her new red wagon, but her mother asks her to go to the market: "That sounded like a chore. Lucy didn't want to do chores." In the company of her animal friends, though, the errand becomes a string of adventures. With soft colors, rounded forms, and just the right amount of furry cuddliness, Liwska's (The Quiet Book) paintings portray their encounter with a rainstorm (the wagon becomes a boat atop a huge wave); their visit to the market (a circus, with Lucy tossing fruit to a bear on a trapeze); and the wagon's collision with a rock (a space voyage, with wagon as spaceship and vegetables as celestial objects). The contrast between the matter-of-fact text and whimsical interpretations gives the book its momentum; the last line-"Finally, Lucy was free to play with her wagon"-accompanies a portrait of Lucy asleep inside. Liwska's story stays true to the way children see the world, gives the gentlest of pushes toward cooperation, and offers respite from suburban anxiety and busyness. Ages 3-5. 

Copyright 2010 Publisher’s Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

"This title owes its delight to the well-balanced, deadpan disparity between the spare, straightforward text and the increasingly wild scenarios depicted in the digitally colored pencil illustrations. According to the words, the animals climb a hill, weather some rain, load up at the market, regroup after hitting a rock, and return home. The pictures, however, show a different story: along the way, the red wagon transforms from pirate ship to covered wagon to circus caravan to train to rocket ship to truck in detailed scenes children will want to revisit. Preschoolers will recognize the reality-blurring borders of their own made-up worlds; children on the cusp of independent reading will enjoy following the simple, bold-type sentences; and both audiences will hope for future adventures from Lucy and her friends. —Booklist, starred review

"Liwska renders the illustrations in soft-hued pencil and digital coloring, similar in style to those she created for Deborah Underwood's The Quiet Book. Adding to the quality of this gentle yet adventurous tale is the way the illustrations provide an imaginative alternative visual narrative that enhances the straightforward text. An enjoyable story to read with creative little critters just like Lucy." —Horn Book Reviews