Traction Man Is Here!

by Mini Grey

Overview

Traction Man—wearing combat boots, battle pants, and his warfare shirt—comes in a box, but very quickly finds the way into the imagination of his lucky boy owner. This superhero searches for the Lost Wreck of the Sieve as the boy makes a game of doing the dishes, and later in the bathtub, he conquers the Mysterious Toes that are stealing his pet, the brave little Scrubbing Brush. These are just a few of the action-packed adventures played out by the boy and his new toy that may not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, but can vanquish all manner of villains lurking around the house. Mini Grey’s story in words and pictures is an irresistible invitation to the private world of a child’s play.

Praise for The Very Smart Pea and the Princess-to-Be:

“A rib-tickling U.S. debut for Grey, with plenty of sight gags to complement the chatty narrative.”—Kirkus Reviews

“The Very Smart Pea and the Princess-to-Be delivers an entertaining spin and a great deal of visual wit.”—The Horn Book

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780375987014
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	08/31/2011
Series:	Traction Man Series , #1
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
Lexile:	AD630L (what's this?)
File size:	14 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Mini Grey was given her name after being born in a Mini Cooper automobile in a parking lot in Wales. In 2003, The Very Smart Pea and the Princess-to-Be was her first book to be published in the U.S. She lives in Oxford, England.

Editorial Reviews

Meet Traction Man, an action figure who takes young readers on an uproarious adventure within a little boy's imagination. In a dazzling intersection of the real and imagined, the toy teams up with his owner to wash dishes, for example: "Traction Man is diving in the foamy waters of the Sink...He is searching for the Lost Wreck of the Sieve." Our hero must escape the clutches of a jellyfish-shaped "Poisonous Dishcloth" and other treacherous household items. Grey's view of the world from a 5-year-old boy's perspective is dead-on, and the snappy, comic-book-style illustrations are a hoot. (ages 4 to 6)
Child magazine's Best Children's Book Awards 2005

Traction Man is ready for anything-but can he overcome the gift of an all-in-one knitted green romper suit with matching bonnet? Traction Man is most definitely an action figure, NOT a doll: His accessories include a sub-aqua suit, a space suit, a warfare shirt and a deep-sea diving suit. As narrated by the little boy who receives him for Christmas, his life is one adventure after another, but Granny's gift of the odious all-in-one knitted green romper suit with matching bonnet is almost too much for this doughty hero, until faithful companion Scrubbing Brush leads him to an ingenious solution. The intentionally overwrought voice-over is just exactly right, as are the comic-book style panels and the impossibly square-jawed hero. Occasional full-bleed spreads place Traction Man in his context with his owner (and parental admonishments occasionally and appropriately intrude), but for the most part, he and Scrubbing Brush are allowed the liberty to develop fully in their own right, their owner's imagination giving them all the life their readers will want. An absolutely, hilariously, dead-on perfect celebration of the relationship between child and toy. (Picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews