Red Wagon [Hardcover]

Renata Liwska (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: February 17, 2011 | Age Range: 3 - 5 years

All Lucy wants to do is play with her brand-new, bright red wagon. But her mother has other plans for her-and the wagon. Lucy must go to the market and buy vegetables for dinner. Lucy doesn't want to do chores! But she sets off for the market nonetheless, hauling her red wagon with her. Before long, her ordinary trip becomes a high-seas adventure, a ride through outer space, and a day at the circus. As long as she has her red wagon, not even chores can get in the way of Lucy's fun.

New York Times bestseller Renata Liwska's most vibrant art ever takes center stage in this imaginative book for the youngest of readers.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-A fluffy bipedal fox has a new red wagon and, as far as she's concerned, it's playtime right now. But Mom has a chore for her first. Lucy needs to go to the market. She's not enthused, but she does head off, shopping list in her paw, and takes along her imagination. Hedgehog, Rabbit, Raccoon, and others join her in fanciful play as the wagon becomes a boat, covered wagon, truck, or train while they make their way down the road. Lucy's Mom is pleased when she returns, task finished, and now it's time to play. Except, all that "work" actually means that the little fox is now ready for a nap. The illustrations are done with pencil and are colored digitally. The small childlike animals are fluffy, soft, and friendly looking. Although the story moves between fantasy and reality without much explanation, overall it offers an appealing-if not outstanding-slice-of-life story.-Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* The creator of The Quiet Book (2010), a New York Times best-seller, offers a winning story of imaginative play that makes a worthy partner to Crockett Johnson�s Harold and the Purple Crayon (1955) and Antoinette Portis� Not a Box (2007). Lucy, a fuzzy red fox, can�t wait to play with her new red wagon, but she doesn�t like her mother�s suggestion that she use it to go to the market: �That sounded like a chore. Lucy didn�t want to do chores.� Still, shopping list in paw, Lucy sets out, followed by a small menagerie of adorable animal pals. 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. Preschool-Grade 1. --Gillian Engberg

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 3 - 5 years
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Philomel (February 17, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399252371
• ISBN-13: 978-0399252372
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 0.4 x 10.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,276 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Most of Renata Liwska's illustrations are drawn in her sketchbook which she carries with her always. This allows her to draw wherever and whenever inspiration strikes. Her artwork is a reflection of her travels - from childhood playground adventures to her current adventures living in Calgary, Canada, with her illustrator husband, Mike Kerr. Her childhood memories are of growing up in Warsaw, Poland. Renata is the illustrator of the New York Times Bestselling and critically acclaimed picture book THE QUIET BOOK written by Deborah Underwood. She has also illustrated a sequel THE LOUD BOOK. Additionally she has illustrated NIKOLAI THE ONLY BEAR written by Barbara Joosse and SKYLAR written by Mary Cuffe-Perez. She has written and illustrated RED WAGON published in 2011 by Philomel Books and LITTLE PANDA published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute adventure for preschoolers September 3, 2011

By P. Johnson

Format:Hardcover

My two-year-old son loves this book. He usually likes books about cars, trucks, and trains the best; this one has enough of those and some cute forest animals. The pictures are lovely, too. I actually enjoyed reading it fifteen or so times before we took it back to the library.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Imaginative December 19, 2011

By Debnance at Readerbuzz

Format:Hardcover

Lucy has a new red wagon. She wants to play with it, but her mother wants her to use it to pick up some groceries for her. Lucy uses her imagination to ride the enormous waves of an ocean during a storm, drive a covered wagon, be the engineer on a train, and ride on a rocketship using her wagon.

"Lucy quickly pushed the wagon down the hill. (Illustration shows Lucy and her friends riding the ocean waves during a big storm)
By the time she got to the bottom, it was really coming down!" (Illustration shows the ocean waves are very big.)

Nice to see a story where children are encouraged to use their imaginations.

5.0 out of 5 stars Cute book! April 5, 2013

By M's Mom

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a well illustrated book about a fox named Lucy who uses her imagination when sent to the market by her mother with her brand new little red wagon. My 2 1/2 year old son really likes this book and we talk about what Lucy is pretending her wagon is on each page.