A Bully’s Birthday

An Aladdin Paperbacks Ready-To-Roll Level 1 easy reader, Jon Scieszka’s Trucktown: Zoom! Boom! Bully is the story of the efforts of five little trucks who do something kind for Big Rig the bully’s birthday by giving him a gift to zoom! boom! knock over.  Published in 2008, this story is written by Jon Scieszka with artwork created by David Shannon, Loren Long, and David Gordon of the Design Garage. Similar to other publishers’ level 1 texts, this book uses short words and sentences, a large typeface, and white space to encourage early readers.  The larger, colorful text for the onomatopoeia Zoom! Boom! adds variety and interest. The text also offers a review of counting backward from four to one as the trucks build Big Rig a layered “cake” of barrels, crates, tires, and cement icing. The repetition of “Zoom! Boom!”, “Big Rig!”, and “He is such a bully,” will also help young readers along.  The artwork is colorful and engaging, effectively conveying Big Rig’s angry Zoom! Boom! and the other trucks’ looks of disappointment at his bullying. Though this book seems to be aimed at little boys, the presence of the pink garbage truck Gabby may seek to draw girls’ attention, as well. This book would make a fun independent read or a read aloud for children who enjoy reading about things that go.