Little Bulldozer is excited about celebrating his special day with a party. But, as he trundles from one construction vehicle to another on the job site, he is dismayed to find everyone is too busy working to share his enthusiasm. As disappointment grows, his blade droops a little more and his movements slow from zooming to crawling. Rohmann uses block prints, with three plates for each illustration, employing a printmaking system that results in clear and colorful black-framed pictures with images outlined in thick black lines. The silhouette of a large city skyline is shown in the background while the construction site and a variety of trucks are close-up. Action verbs liked rolled, rumbled, rattled, and grumbled add zest to the tale of the little vehicle's big day and its eventual happy ending. Repetition throughout will be welcomed by emerging readers, and observant children will begin to identify what the vehicles are constructing. Match this with Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site, by Sherri Duskey Rinker (2011), and make young vehicle-lovers very happy.

PreS-Gr 1 Fleming and Rohmann team up for their second picture book in celebration of Bulldozer's birthday. He zooms across the construction site in joyous anticipation of his big day only to discover that every construction truck he greets is too busy to acknowledge anything more than the jobs that need to be done. As surely as the scooping, sifting, and stirring prevails, Bulldozer's blade droops lower and lower as the day passes without recognition. When the construction whistle signals the end of the work day with a big "Wooot!" all hope is lost until a "Feeef!" and a "Toot! Tweet! Ah-wooo!" signal the start of a surprise birthday party. Rohmann's signature relief (block) prints are a perfect complement to Fleming's earnest tale. The bold black lines of the machines and construction site are balanced by the black framed pages and offset by the trucks' primary colors and variable backgrounds in blues and white. Chunky details, especially the trucks' eyes and the rubble they're tending, make the story come alive. The heavyweight matte paper and relief lettering on the dust jacket add satisfying tactile details to the engaging text and playful illustrations. VERDICT This masterfully crafted story will become a favorite read-aloud choice. Lynn Van Auken, Oak Bluffs School, Oak Bluffs, MA