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Summary
Summary
Rows of stock cars are lined up on the track. The loudspeakers blare: "Ladies and gentlemen, start--your--engines!" There's a sudden rumble of motors as the cars follow the pace car around the track: one lap, two laps, three. Then the green flag rips across the sky and--vroom!--the race is on! In this action-packed picture book, Nathan Clement puts young fans smack in the middle of a stock-car race with graphic illustrations of cars roaring down the speedway, squealing around curves, and zooming 200 miles per hour to the finish line.
Author Notes
Nathan Clement is the writer and illustrator of Job Site and Drive , which Kirkus Reviews hailed in a starred review as the "Great American Truck Book." He lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Young race fans will devour this thrilling picture book that not only details an auto race, but also uniquely and accurately demonstrates the purposes of racing flags. The fast-paced narrative opens with an informative guide to common flags, which then appear during the course of the story. On the following page, a race begins with the call for "ladies and gentlemen" to start their engines. Sleek, colorful stock cars rumble, vroom, turn, squeal, bump, spin, and smash. Pit crews service the vehicles. A flag man directs speedway traffic until the checkered flag waves the winner across the finish line. On the final page, the setting changes to a child sitting on a black-and-white checkerboard floor, or perhaps a bedspread, reenacting the race with small replica cars. Concise descriptive sentences combine with dramatic digital artwork to trace the action. Clement's lines, curves, and shapes convey motion, speed, and the excitement of the track. Combine this title with Cynthia Lord's Hot Rod Hamster (Scholastic, 2010) and Brian Floca's Racecar Alphabet (S & S, 2003) for a rousing auto-racing-themed storytime.-Lynn Vanca, Freelance Librarian, Akron, OH (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Clement sticks with the vehicular theme of his previous picture books, Drive and Job Site, with a tribute to the excitement of stock-car racing. Dozens of cars sit behind the starting line as the race is set to begin, and the announcer's opening remarks make it clear that this is the age of Danica Patrick: "Ladies and gentlemen, start-your-engines!" (Additionally, the pace car driver, one of the few drivers visible behind the wheel, is a woman.) The crisp digital artwork captures the gleam of the cars' bright paint jobs and the glare off their windshields; sparks erupt like a spray of orange static when two cars get too close ("The yellow flag signals danger! Don't pass!"). The clipped prose reflects the speed and drama of the race, though it doesn't generate much tension as the last lap approaches. The penultimate spread reveals, yes, who the winner of the race is, but also that the speedway setting isn't quite what readers have been led to believe. A good pick for both NASCAR and Matchbox fans. Ages 5-up. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Clement gives readers the feeling of watching a stock-car race while delivering information regarding the meaning of commonly used stock-car racing flags and racing terminology. The text is sparse, but high-octane phrasing creates an element of excitement, and there's a nice twist at book's end. Slick, bright computer-rendered illustrations splashed across double-page spreads further the aura of energetic competition. (c) Copyright 2013. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
With the same attention to detail as his Drive (2008) and Job Site (2011), Clement brings stock-car racing to life for armchair drivers. Readers see it all--from the order to start engines to the pit stops and the many mishaps that can happen during a race--and flags help signal much of it. But while all the details are there, the whys are missing--why the pace car, why the pit stops? The race cars follow the pace car for several laps before the green flag starts the race. A collision triggers the yellow caution flag, and the pace car again leads the way. "Race cars hit the pits. Refuel. Jack up. Change tires." When the green flag is again waved, "It's pedal to the metal." A crash and a wave of the red flag stops the race while the track is cleared. The white last-lap flag is quickly followed by the famous checkered flag, ending the race. The final page reveals it's all been child's play: A child's hand extends from the edge and holds the winning car. Brightly colored cars in the digital illustrations contrast nicely with the gray and black of the track. Distance is indicated by blurriness, with objects in the foreground having sharp, crisp lines. A guide to the flags' meanings appears before the story. Fans will race to share this with their favorite racers-to-be, though they will need to fill listeners in on all the specific whys and hows. (Picture book. 4-7)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Before the race begins, a chart explains the meaning of six flags commonly used in stock car races. The green flag appears, the race begins, and the five other flags appear in specific circumstances as it progresses. The short staccato narrative captures the urgency and tension, as cars bump, spin, smash and crash! The red flag waves. Stop the race. In glossy computer-rendered art, sleek stock cars sport numbers and images of stars and flames but no advertising or grit. The only human figures appear in the pace car, waving the flags, and working the pit, until oversize fingers appear on the roof of the winning car, and the child's arm lifts it off the toy track. Whether the arm belongs to an aspiring Danica Patrick or Dale Earnhardt Jr. is left to the reader. Fast and flashy, this racing reverie will appeal to NASCAR fans as well as those who adore all kinds of vehicles.--Perkins, Linda Copyright 2010 Booklist