ALA Booklist
(Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 2014)
Once again Scieszka and crew really bring the noise: "Q often means Quiet' / in a different place. / In Trucktown Q means Quite' / QUITE LOUD! / when we race." The third alphabet book in this proliferating series (following Trucktown on Reading Street ABCs, 2007, and Junkyard Dig! Building from A to Z, 2010) sends the heavy-duty wheeled cast roaring through the letters, from "A is for Axle" to the final celebration for race winner "IZZZZZZZZy," the ice cream truck. The digitally designed figures and settings, originally developed by David Gordon, Loren Long, David Shannon, and other established picture-book stars, feature a cast of a large array of anthropomorphic, rumpled looking trucks and working vehicles into a wild hugger-mugger punctuated with mishaps, dirty tricks, and outsize sound effects. The featured letters are highlighted by size and color and usually recur several times in the alliterative rhymes. A fine alternative to such equally high-volume ABCs as Ross MacDonald's Achoo! Bang! Crash! (2003) and Nate Evans' Bang! Boom! Roar! (2012).
School Library Journal
(Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 CDT 2014)
PreS-Gr 1 Trucktown fans will welcome this latest addition to the series. After Jack Truck challenges his friends to a race, they join in, sometimes alphabetically (Dan Dump Truck, Gabby Garbage Truck, and Izzy Ice Cream Truck among them). With their headlight eyes bulging, they speed off in clouds of dust. Lucy Ladder Truck stops to do a trick, Monster Max becomes airborne, and the others take a detour because of potholes. An overhead view of the race features a cacophony of truck sounds. When a stop sign leads to a massive crash, Ted Tow Truck comes to the rescue and the race resumes. With the finish line in sight, the vehicles slow down for a yield sign, allowing little Izzy to win the race. Vehicles with lots of personality, bright artwork, and an action-packed story will make this title a favorite for truck-loving youngsters. Mary Jean Smith, formerly at Southside Elementary School, Lebanon, TN
Horn Book
In this desultory addition to the series, all the familiar residents of Trucktown--from Jack Truck to Izzy Ice Cream Truck--compete in a race to see who will get from A to Z first. Boisterous and colorful illustrations will grab the attention of any truck fan, but the text's rhymes are uninspired and sometimes read aloud awkwardly.