The Bridge

The Bridge

When the old wooden bridge breaks, a young boy is delighted to be able to watch, from his front yard, the many different machines at work building the new bridge across the brook. From School Library Journal Kindergarten-Grade 3 The old wooden bridge rattles when vehicles cross over it on the way to Ben's house, so Ben and his dog always know when someone's coming. To Ben's delight and intense interest, when the old bridge collapses, his father hires a work crew who bring a series of machines and a culvert to build a new bridge. All day long (his mother brings him a picnic breakfast and lunch), Ben watches as workers run the backhoe, the bulldozer, and the loader, fitting the culvert into the brook. Children interested in these huge and powerful machines and how they work will be riveted to the narrative. Himler's beautifully composed watercolors expand the text; if his renderings of people are occasionally awkward, the focus of the bookthe great machines working in harmony in the woodsy settingseems to be painted with effortless realism. Because the story is long and listeners will want to examine the pictures closely, this book will be most enjoyed when shared one-on-one. Susan H. Patron, Los Angeles Public LibraryCopyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.