ALA Booklist (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CST 2002)

When Charlie's teacher asks her students to visit people and places in their community, his mother takes him on a walk through the neighborhood. He draws pictures of all the community helpers he sees along the way: teacher, police officer, barber, pharmacist, bank teller. Throughout the day, Charlie visits many parts of his community, but only at bedtime does he realize that the best part of the neighborhood is his own home. Written from a child's perspective, the story has a cheerful tone and enough variety to keep the expedition interesting. The lively ink, watercolor, and colored-pencil illustrations are full of intriguing details that children will explore as the text is read aloud. Caseley's latest will receive a warm welcome from librarians combing the shelves for good picture books to support community helper units.

Horn Book (Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 CST 2004)

Thompson describes what Mouse finds when he rides to school in a backpack: "Squiggle, scribble, dot crayons! / Ssip, slurp, crunch snacks!" and children, of course--"Wiggly, giggly, best of all friends!" Illustrations in glowing colors provide appealing close-ups of Mouse and his discoveries; the toe of a sneaker, for example, takes up most of one page.

Kirkus Reviews

A class assignment sends Charlie and his mother on an exploration of the neighborhood in Caseley's ( Bully , 2001, etc.) curriculum-oriented offering. "Visit the people and places in your community," says Charlie's teacher. "Take your notebook and explore." Full-color illustrations (rendered in watercolor, colored pencils, and black pen) show Charlie and his mother after school as the boy makes the first entry in his notebook. " Teacher!' said Charlie. Should I write her name down?' Absolutely,' said Mama. Your teacher is a big part of your community.' " With each step along the way (the park, post office, and fire station, for example). Charlie adds an entry while his mother provides encouragement. (" Barber shop!' said Charlie. So smart,' said Mama.' ") Framed vignettes depict the places; spot art shows what Charlie has written and drawn in his book. The formula continues to the very end. " Home!' said Charlie [tucked in bed]. I forgot about home.' " The final illustration shows all the entries in Charlie's notebook. A natural choice for a unit on community as well as sparking a child's own exploration. (Picture book. 5-8)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Sparked by a school assignment, a boy and his mother keep track of the people and places in the neighborhood in On the Town: A Community Adventure by Judith Caseley. The child's notebook entries appear throughout in lively watercolor, colored pencil and ink illustrations. (Apr.)

School Library Journal (Wed May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2002)

K-Gr 2 This simply told tale explores a subject that is routinely studied in the primary grades. Armed with a new black notebook and a homework assignment to explore his community and the people who live in it, Charlie and his mother walk around town and think about what the boy should write down. They run a variety of familiar errands that help him understand the many different establishments that make up his communitysuch as the bank, the post office, the fire station, and the barbershopand he draws pictures of the people he meets in each locale. Caseley's illustrations, rendered in watercolors and colored pencil outlined in black ink, provide details through the creative use of borders and spot art that showcases Charlie's notebook entries. This useful title is sure to be a popular choice in libraries everywhere. Lisa Gangemi Krapp, Middle Country Public Library, Centereach, NY