Bing! Bang! Chugga! Beep! by Bill Martin Jr. and Michael Sampson (illustrated by Nathalie Beauvois; Brown Books Kids, 2023) is a bright and noisy car picture book with a bouncing rhyme scheme following the “This Old Man” tune. The common refrain of “Bing! Bang! Chugga! Beep!” adds to the simple couplets to make it simply a delight to read aloud. The artwork is painted collage paper layered to give the art a three-dimensional look.
A few words from “my mother” gives context by converting the car into a child’s toy. I felt this non-rhyming incursion into the bouncing rhyme almost took away from the readability. But, it gives a stark contrast between parental involvement (and lack of imagination) with the child’s delight at playing with his car. The presence of the child in the middle of this car’s story makes it one any young vehicle-lover will appreciate. My oldest (now 16) would have loved this a decade ago!
