Illustrations are what we expect from Floca, beautiful & detailed. The pictures are more interesting then the text, which is boring and a bit redundant. Great pictures of trucks would interest the small truck loving kids, but the text would probably not be something to read over ad over to those little buddies. ( )

Will Caldecott judges consider a Covid19 themed book? In my opinion they should because this book is absolutely beautiful. This is a well done representation of the pandemic and pays homage to those who could not stay inside those beginning days.

It's text heavy. It's a lap read and not a storytime read (which, sidebar, I loved that there was a mention of virtual storytimes....I did those!!) But Caldecott criteria is not on the words; it is on the pictures. In typical Brian Floca fashion, the artwork is the dominant driving force. There is diversity in the healthcare and delivery workers. The homages to the toilet paper and obscene about of packages people bought.....I loved those because the relevancy is spot on. ( )

Another picture book memorializing the early days of COVID-19. This one honors the essential workers who kept working and taking care of infrastructure, public safety, transportation, moving of goods, and many sick patients. Taken all together, it upholds how very crucial our essential workers are to a functioning society. ( )

The author/illustrator created a tribute to New York City at the same time he teaches the intended audience of 4 and up how many people are considered “essential” to keep life going in times of trouble, like during the COVID lock-downs.

He shows people outside of their homes, all of whom are wearing masks, making and delivering food, driving buses, delivering mail, operating trash trucks, working on keeping the water, gas, and electricity flowing, and saving lives in ambulances and in hospitals. Each double-page spread is filled with details. Watching over the streets are members of a family who “miss our friends and neighbors, and we miss the voice of the city.” But, they say, “we see the people still out on the streets, and whether they’re family, friends, or strangers, we see the work they’re doing.” He also has the family participating in the ritual celebration of those people performed by New Yorkers every evening during the worst of the pandemic, when they showed their appreciation by cheering, banging on pots and pans, and ringing bells. He concludes: “Thanks to the people keeping our city going.”

In an Author’s Note, Floca explains how the idea for the book came about, writing that “it feels both meaningful and fraught to make a book about this difficult moment…”

Floca’s watercolor, ink, acrylic, and gouache art features soft colors and a virtual catalog of the many vehicles one might see in the city.

Evaluation: This is a great opportunity to point out to kids how many people make sacrifices even during the most dangerous times to help their lives run smoothly. ( )

Love the art!!! ( )