Life of a Car [Hardcover]

Susan Steggall (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 13, 2008 | Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

Many things happen in the life of a car: it’s built, sold, driven, washed . . . sometimes it even crashes! In this book, preschoolers see all of these events, and in the end learn that an old car can even be recycled to start anew. Each two-page spread focuses on a certain stage in a car’s existence.

Susan Steggall’s brightly colored collage art will attract all automobile lovers and invite them in for a fun look at the life of a car.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1—With torn-paper collages in saturated color and just three words for every spread except the last, Steggall presents the life cycle of a car from its manufacture to its destruction and recycling, when the process begins anew. Large spreads show the car's assembly, delivery, purchase by a woman with two children, and how they use and maintain it until an accident requires that they call a tow truck and dispose of it. Cars crowd the endpapers, and a designer is busily at work on the title page. Sharp readers will notice that, like the vehicles in Steggall's On the Road (Kane/Miller, 2005), these autos have steering wheels on the right, license plates that look different, and travel on the left side of the road. As an added bonus, the youngsters who journey with this car through its brief life will also bump into delicious verbs such as "deliver," "tow," "strip," "crush," and "recycle."—Marianne Saccardi, formerly at Norwalk Community College, CT
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Review

"Should appeal particularly to budding mechanics." — Kirkus

 

 

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (May 13, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805087478
• ISBN-13: 978-0805087475
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 9.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #769,601 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

When my two boys were small they were absolutely fascinated by all different sorts of transport and spent hours playing with toy cars and trains. Little vehicles were always lined up along garden walls and window sills or the edge of the bath and I ended up lying on the floor for hours too, brooming cars along road mats and building more and more complicated train tracks. I found myself buying new tunnels and buffers just to keep myself amused during those long, slow days.

I wanted to find an excuse to do something a bit more creative with my time, so I started printing vehicle pictures onto their bedroom walls and sewing little cars and buses along their duvet covers. One thing led to another and soon I was coming up with ideas for picture books.

My illustrations are all collages made from many different manufactured and handmade papers, built up in layers to create depth and texture. I now also give talks about my work and run collage workshops for children in schools and libraries.

In March 2011 I was highly commended by the Booktrust judges in their 'Best New Illustrators Award'.

Visit my website at www.susansteggall.co.uk