The Caboose Who Got Loose

Some read-alouds are a real rollicking ride.

They are challenging the first time around and they remain a wonder many months and years later.

Can there be anything better in the world of picture books?

As you may know, I only review children's books that we buy for our home library.

Yep, it is a pretty limiting rule.

But that does not mean that we do not frequent libraries. Far from it!

And sometimes, we dig up a gem or two in a public library - that we simply have to include in our home collection.
The Caboose Who Got Loose is a gem that we simply had to order, as it simply exudes great vocabulary and exuberant syntax on every single page.

It is not too simple a story, yet it is not too complex.

This is a book in verse, which adds a whole new lawyer of enjoyment.

Bill Peet's fabulous story simply shines in rhyme and it has captured the hearts of my kids. And I am happy to report it is a fully blown love affair these days.

The best books remain challenging - as your children grow with them. 


So, if you are searching for the best - it is not a flashy conquest that you should be looking for.

No, this book grows on your child and as such is a perfect addition to a home library.


The Examined Life Of A Caboose

If a good picture book sings, then a good picture book in verse sings and dances
           PJ Lyons


Let me be truthful, this book did not capture the fancy of my boy and girl the very first time we read it.

It is not like they didn't like it, they loved the pictures - but the text was maybe a bit surprising.

Not banal.

In rhyming verse.

Complex.

Charming.

Yes, there are books like that still.

Books that require listening skills.

Or better said, books that build listening skills.

Bill Peet - who worked as an animator for Walt Disney Studios for more than two decades - is a natural and no wonder that he has written and illustrated more than thirty well-loved books for kids during his career. He is also author of a Caldecott Honor Book - Bill Peet: An Autobiography.

Peet extremely popular among kids, according to the ultimate connoisseur  of children's books Anita Silvey. He was so beloved, in fact, that in the eyes of many kids he was even "more important than the president".

I knew the caboose was a winner when my four-year olds started laughing at Katy's fright from a smoke-filled tunnel as dark as night.

"As she crept through the tunnel with a horrible thought
That far back in the darkness she'd suddenly be caught
By caboose-eating monsters who lurked all about
The would gobble her up before she got out."

They split their sides whenever they hear this wonderful rhyme about the secretive caboose-eating monsters!

And the scenery - changes from page to page and it keeps the story moving and is perfectly integrated with the story in verse.

A deep story about a seemingly mundane life of a caboose.

This is no ordinary caboose, it is a caboose that wants more from life.

Katy had little hope she would ever get loose
Or ever be anything but a caboose.
"I can wish," sighed poor Katy. What else can I do?
If you wish hard enough then your wish might come true."
Often Katy would wish that she someday could be
Something quiet and simple like a lovely elm tree,
Or a ramshackle barn all alone on a hill
Where the noisiest thing was a squeaky windmill.

Katy is a caboose that does not resign herself to the simple life of a the last car in a train composition.

She travels the country and she desires more.

How inspirational a message to share with your kids.

But what until you see what Bill Peet has in store for us.

After a chance meeting, with the shack of a switchman, Katy learns that there is someone who envies her life.

"I'd like to be you," said the shack very sadly.
"If I could trade places I would very gladly.
A caboose is what I've always wanted to be,
For you have the best life from what I can see."

And things finally change. Katy understands that her unhappiness was without reason.

Satisfaction in life is all about maintaining the proper perspective.

With her new point of view, Katy's life changes for the better.

The End

Wait, strike that!

The drama just begins, in fact!

I cannot tell you everything about the last third of the book, but if you must know, here are some tidbits:

- Katy takes off and flies like a kite

- Katy squeezes between two evergreen trees

- Katy hides above a startled bull moose.

Yeah! Who would have guessed?

Indeed, this is a real rollicking read-aloud for every family.


A fantastic challenge for the reader and the listener.

Borderline perfection.



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The Caboose Who Got Loose is available from bookstores in the US, Canada and UK:

 

Author: Bill Peet
Illustrator: Bill Peet
Pages: 48 pages
Publisher: Sandpiper
ISBN-13: 9780618959792
Source: Purchased by Read Aloud Dad

VERDICT: SNAP IT UP!