From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 2-Testa presents another life message, using his trademark spare text and framed, colorful cartoon drawings surrounded by white space. Three country children invite a city boy waiting at the bus stop to experience rural life, gradually encouraging him to forsake his electronic game, boom box, in-line skates, and other urban luxuries in order to appreciate bird songs, a pond, and a cow. Testa saves the comedy for the last page, where Mark, Emma, and Louis and their dog experiment with the abandoned items as Tony's bus home reaches the horizon. Unfortunately, the author skipped the visual games found in some of his other works, such as If You Take a Pencil (Andersen, 1982; o.p.) and Too Much Garbage (North-South, 2001), so this one is suited to a single reading.
Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VACopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Book Description
When Tony, a city boy, visits the country for the first time, he has a lot to learn. Luckily, he meets three local children who take him on a journey of discovery. Tony is fascinated and delighted by all he sees. He is grateful to his new friends for sharing country life with him, and they in turn appreciate Tony, whose enthusiasm has given them a fresh view of their world.
