Chugga Chugga Choo-Choo

Highly recommend

This is a great rhyming story about a boy's imaginative train play. A young boy has set up a creative train layout in his room: going over the fish tank (bridge), to the freight yard, up mountains, down valleys, etc. His entire room is laid out with track and many of his toys are involved in the layout such as blocks to prop up the track and dolls to lift boxes. As we read the book we see the toys "moving" and doing jobs and the illustrations are such that we are as small as the train and looking out and around as if we were riding the train ourselves. At the end the train is said to go into the roundhouse and the boy is seen sleeping in bed with his locomotive and the track laid out on the floor all around his room! Great imagination!The text itself is well written and rhyming and just has a great flow to it. I bought our first hardcover edition right after it was published which was over 3 years ago. My older son has loved this since he was 2 years old and I have read it over and over and over. He is a real train lover and even now at age 5 he loves this book (over many of the other train-themed children's fiction books we own). The text is not annoying in any way and I truly don't groan when I have to reread it to him several times. My second son has loved this book since infancy. Sadly, after 3 years of handling it finally fell apart and now I am buying a second hardcover edition. I browsed the board book version in a store but was disappointed. The hardcover is a larger size than usual and the illustrations are bold and large. In the board book version some of the illustrations are greatly pared down in size and much is lost. If you own the board version I highly recommend also buying the hardcover edition if your child likes the book. This would make a great gift!

Tag along with a little boy and his steam engine as they "chugga-chugga choo-choo" to the city on a very busy day. This engaging little book, (also available in board size), begs to be read repeatedly due to its wonderfully rhythmic prose and vibrantly animated illustrations. "Sun's up! Morning's here. Up and at 'em, engineer. Chugga-chugga choo-choo, whistle blowing, Whoooooooo! Whoooooooo!" This book is actually a nighttime story, but my 11th month old is so enthralled by the vivid colors and musical beat that I read it to him after his naps. Oh, and not just for little boys, my four-year old niece adores this book. She asks for Chugga-chugga choo-choo and walks around afterwards saying Whoooooooo! Whoooooooo! A real winner! Birth and up.

We borrowed this book from the library. After having it read to him for the first time, my 2 1/2 year old son practically took possession of it. We returned it 3 days ago and he asks for it repeatedly. I told him that we would borrow it again later. Tonight, just as he was falling asleep, he said "Chugga, where are you? In the library? Come back later." Now I have to buy it so that he will always have it on hand when he wants it. This is a wonderful book for reading out loud. I would love to send a personal note to Mr. Lewis and Mr. Kirk telling them how much we enjoy this book.

My daughter's story hour teacher said this book is a must read and was keeping it to share with all her groups. I agree and so do the kids. It reminds me of another favorite, "The Tub People". The child's toys have an adventure of their own.

"Sun's up, morning's here. Up and at 'em, engineer!" After one reading, this became my 2-yr-old son's favorite book. He loves to chime in with the last line of verse on each page. As a train fanatic, he loves seeing all the parts of the toy train and making the Whooo Whooo sounds. As a parent, I find the setting in a child's room (rather than in the outdoors) very refreshing. Morning, naptime, bedtime, we are probably reading this book.