Maxi the Little Taxi

by Elizabeth Upton, Henry Cole (Illustrator)

Overview

He's little! He's cute! But he's getting all dirty! This warm, charming story perfectly captures all the ups and downs of a busy little taxi's first day on the job!

It's Maxi the Taxi's first day of work. What fun it is to zip and zoom all around the town!SPLASH go the mud puddles!PLIPPITY-PLOP drips the ice cream and mustard from sticky little fingers!Soon Maxi becomes so grimy and gooey that no one wants to ride with him.Who will help this dirty little taxi discover what he needs most? It's a smart little boy who takes Maxi for a noisy, tickly bath in the car wash!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545798617
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	03/29/2016
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
Lexile:	AD590L (what's this?)
File size:	14 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

Elizabeth Upton first created Maxi's story to entertain her son when he was young. She has a teaching degree from Teachers College at Columbia University, and her poetry has been included in several collections edited by Lee Bennett Hopkins. She currently works as a writer and a teacher in New York City, where she lives with her two children.
Henry Cole was an adored elementary-school science teacher for sixteen years. He has since illustrated over 150 popular books (some of which he has also authored), including his wordless Forever Home, award-winning picture book Unspoken, which was named an ALA Notable Children’s Book and a New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book, and his book One Little Bag, which was also named an ALA Notable Book, and received three starred reviews. He lives in Florida. To find out more about Henry, go to henrycole.net.

Editorial Reviews

"Cole's bright palette and lively, appealing illustrations are the perfect complement to the rhyming text, which is filled with onomatopoeia and amusing details sure to delight young readers....A great bedtime story." — School Library JournalPraise for Unspoken by Henry Cole*"Gorgeously rendered in soft, dark pencils, this wordless book is reminiscent of the naturalistic pencil artistry of Maurice Sendak and Brian Selznick, but unique in its accurate re-creation of a Civil War-era farm in northwestern Virginia...Superb visual storytelling shows her hands time and time again offering a piece of corn bread, apple pie, a leg of chicken, each time on a small checkered kerchief, to the young, hidden runaway. The soldiers return with a poster: 'Wanted! Escaped! Reward!' These words call out in the otherwise wordless book, and readers feel their power." —School Library Journal, starred review*"Cole's beautifully detailed pencil drawings on cream-colored paper deftly visualize a family's ruggedly simple lifestyle on a Civil War-era homestead, while facing stark, ethical choices... Cole conjures significant tension and emotional heft (his silent storytelling calls to mind Brian Selznick's recent work) in this powerful tale of quiet camaraderie and courage." —Publishers Weekly, starred reviewPraise for The Kiss Box, illustrated by Henry Cole"Cole complements the language beautifully with watercolor and colored-pencil illustrations evoking the classic joys of childhood: enjoying a tree swing, fishing at a pond and sharing a yummy picnic lunch." —Kirkus Reviews"Cole's watercolor and colored pencil cartoons are friendly and familiar — there's something very reassuring in the understated emotion of his portrayals and the graceful beauty of his outdoor settings." —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

2015-12-22
Maxi the taxi can't wait to start driving through the streets of a big city. Earnest to the core, shiny yellow Maxi, with bright eyes for windows and a smile stretched out wide across his front, is thrilled to start his first day of work. His tiny tires bounce across the pavement as he ZOOOMs and ZIPs all over town. Unfortunately, he also splashes in every puddle that he sees. Ice cream drips make him sticky, and pigeon droppings make him icky. Then a snobby "taxi gal" pulls up next to him to whisper words of unsolicited advice: "You'd better wash up Mr. Gooey-Goo, / or no one will want to ride with you!" Maxi realizes she is right. But how does he get clean in this big, dirty city? Luckily a young tot has just the answer—a car wash! Maxi is emotionally equivalent to a young tot himself; children will recognize themselves as he gets dirty, exhibits wide-eyed wonder, quivers into tears when things don't go right, and worries about the car wash. Cole infuses Maxi with plenty of personality but falls short on diversity. The background crowd is a mix of ethnicities, but nobody who actively interacts with Maxi is unequivocally a character of color. A bouncy read-aloud with an adorable taxi full of dash and spirit. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews