Tractor-Trailer Trucker: A Powerful Truck Book [Hardcover]

Joyce Slayton Mitchell (Author), Steven Borns (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2004 | Age Level: 7 and up | Grade Level: 2 and up

Learn how to hook up a tractor and the trailer, measure tire tread depth with a dime, use a satellite paging system, and much more! Detailed photos and straight-forward text capture a life on the open road that will jump-start the imaginations of truck fans of all ages.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-4-With close-up color photos and brief, technical directions, this book encourages readers to take the driver's seat. Every page has instructions on how to check under the hood, hook up the tractor and trailer, shift gears, load cargo, complete a "vehicle inspection report," and more. Large pictures of the inside and outside of a tractor-trailer truck dominate each page, but the minimal text that accompanies most of the pictures leaves many questions unanswered. Inquisitive readers will want to know what shock absorbers or ratchet binders do as they read about them. The mentions of "satellite paging" and of "citizens band (CB) radio" demand the kind of detailed explanation that is included in the section on sleeping in the truck. A glossary and a page of "Trucker Talk" don't make up for this lack of clarification. While the title promises that this is "A Powerful Truck Book," it does not convey the sense of size and strength of its subject that Seymour Simon's Book of Trucks (HarperCollins, 2000) does.
Edith Ching, St. Albans School, Mt. St. Alban, Washington, DC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

This well-designed volume offers young trucker wannabes a step-by-step guide to driving a big rig. Written in the imperative instruction-manual style, the handsome book offers tips for checking the various vehicle parts, loading cargo, driving and shifting gears, navigating, and outfitting the cab with modern comforts, including microwaves and laptop computers. Steven Borns' well-reproduced photographs include enough details to satisfy truck fanatics, and a sample "trucker's daily log" and a brief guide to kid-friendly "Trucker Talk" will feed interest further. The language is technical, although a glossary is appended; and struggling readers may skip the text and go straight to the images. But whether they're reading or browsing, children passionate about trucks will keep this one in constant circulation. Gillian Engberg

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Tricycle Press (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582460108
• ISBN-13: 978-1582460109
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,153,327 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tractor-Trailer Trucker is exciting!, April 8, 2001

By 

Rebecca Brown "rebeccasreads" (Clallam Bay, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tractor-Trailer Trucker: A Powerful Truck Book (Hardcover)

A Powerful Truck Book where we get to hook up the tractor to the trailer; load the cargo & inspect the rig. Put the truck in gear - you should see how many they have - pull onto the highway & head out in the driver's seat.

Before starting out there's a lot to do: check under the hood for fluid levels, shock absorbers & frayed hoses & wiring. Check the tires, load the cargo & do your circle check. Phew! That took a lot of time & now it's breakfast at the truck stop & then off on the road with all its sights & sounds, dreams & driving

With bold, bright photos & simple, engaging language, Joyce Slayton Mitchell & Stephen Borns takes us through a tractor-trailer trucker's day. They even provide us with a glossary & a page of trucker talk terms.

A grand learning & talking book - a must for every kid, young & old, who drools at the sight of tractor-trailers, juggernauts, behemoths! I loved this book!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars buyer beware!, May 24, 2003

By 

N C Borlase (Lockridge, WA Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tractor-Trailer Trucker: A Powerful Truck Book (Hardcover)

This book has great photos and provides a very basic overveiw of the trucking industry. I would reccommend this book to any school library. Don't be fooled, this book is not written to help with answering more technical questions that would be sort after by students taking lessons for a career in the trucking industry... For this I strongly reccomend "Bumper to Bumper"

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good for learning, April 27, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Tractor-Trailer Trucker: A Powerful Truck Book (Hardcover)

I think that this book is good for learning because it tells about tractor-trailers. It also tells how they fix trucks. The photos show good photographs in your head with the words.