I Like My Bike - (I Like to Read) by Ag Ferrari (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Funny characters, humorous pictures, and an eco-friendly message-- and a text just right for the newest kindergarten reader in this Level A story.

"I like my bike. I like my car. I like my big car. I like my truck."

The text in this humorous story is simple and repetitive--just right for new readers--but the pictures are wacky and imaginative. A sea lion chauffeurs a large shark, while a cactus drives a canvas-covered pickup truck, and a tiny mouse drives tractor-trailer filled with cheese. All the vehicles, except for the bicycle, get stuck in traffic, as a girl merrily rides along to her destination--a birthday party.

The artwork, in addition to supporting the text and providing surface level comprehension, is chock-full of details that allow for (but don't insist upon) deeper comprehension. There are subtexts, connections, and opportunities for inference.

Level A books, suitable for early kindergarten, are ideal first books for kids to read on their own. One short sentence repeats on every page with one word change per spread. Simple plots are heavily supported by the detailed illustrations. When Level A is mastered, follow up with Level B.

The award-winning I Like to Read(R) series focuses on guided reading levels A through G, based upon Fountas and Pinnell standards. Acclaimed author-illustrators--including winners of Caldecott, Theodor Seuss Geisel, and Coretta Scott King honors--create original, high quality illustrations that support comprehension of simple text and are fun for kids to read with parents, teachers, or on their own!

Review Quotes

"Concise, pedal-powered prose for the earliest of independent readers."--Kirkus Reviews

"A mixed-media landscape reflects movement from road to road. Pencil, watercolors, and ink enhance digital scenes that flow from one driver to the next, while cartoon representatives of both flora and fauna drive their favorite vehicles. A simple repetitive refrain, 'I like my..., ' reinforces the text, while images allow readers to search for details, like finding the bike rider and other recognizable characters who meet at a parkside birthday party. . . . A suggested general purchase for guided reading, the visual variety of images urges readers to infer changes in text." --School Library Journal

" The bare-bones text consists of each driver appreciating their specific vehicle ('I like my truck' says a cactus driving a flowery transport), while loosely rendered mixed-media art fills in the story line. . . . Ferrari wryly drives home his tale's message in a visually telling finale revealing the vexed car, truck, and bus drivers snarled in traffic while the girl, in satisfyingly timely fashion, pedals to her festive destination foreshadowed by visual clues readers glean along the way."--Publishers Weekly

About the Author

ANTONGIONATA FERRARI has illustrated numerous works for children. In 2007 he won the Hans Christian Andersen Award for best Italian illustrator for children. Other books for Holiday House include The Kindhearted Crocodile by Lucia Panzieri and No Honking Allowed! by Stephanie Calemenson.