Detlefsen (Catkwondo) and Neubecker (Little Smokey) fuel their transportation picture book by going full throttle on that ultimate kid fantasy: "What if I were behind the wheel?" Standing on a subway platform, a child acknowledges that watching people is "fairly fascinating" and that riding the train is "definitely fascinating." But "operating the subway far below the bustle of the big city"? "Stand clear for awesome!" More good-better-best vignettes follow, each culminating in an appropriately over-the-top superlative: captaining an ocean liner is "Aye Aye Awesome!" while driving a monster truck is "Crushingly Awesome!" But lest readers come away thinking dreamy life is the ne plus ultra, the book ends with the kid realizing that being a passenger on a family cross-country camper trip is pretty great, too. The text's playful formula and outdoor-voice decibel level makes it a readaloud natural, but it's Neubecker's gift for portraying incredibly detailed situations, chock-full of visual humor, that will render this book awesome for vehicle enthusiasts. Ages 4--8. Author's agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary. Illustrator's agent: Linda Pratt, Wernick & Pratt Agency. (Nov.)

Dedicated to the notion that there is always something more awesome to attempt. A kid lets their mind wander to its natural limits. If, for example, "trains are cool," and if "watching a train is very cool," and if "riding on a train is even cooler," then "conducting a train through the mountains" must be "CHUGGA CHUGGA AWESOME!" This pattern is replicated with a wide variety of other heavy-duty machines. Operating an excavator? "DIG INTO AWESOME!" Piloting a plane? "PREPARE FOR AWESOME!" The child, who has pale skin, like parents and sibling, and straight, dark hair, imagines operating subway trains, monster trucks, boats, and rockets. (Background characters are racially diverse; the woman-of-color co-pilot is a nice touch.) Finally the kid looks out the window of a camper. "Campers are cool. Wait! Are campers cool?" They sure are, and this is one family adventure the kid can actually take outside of the imagination. Detlefsen's text delights in drilling into just how much fun each of the activities featured could be. Meanwhile, the colorful, cartoon artwork meticulously works to render every "awesome" encounter in its natural, amazing extreme. From the blinding array of instruments in the cockpit of an airplane to the sight of tiny cars being crushed beneath monster wheels, there's a jolt of adrenaline cooked into every page. The transportation-obsessed have found a new tale to pore over. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-17-inch double-page spreads viewed at 30.5% of actual size.) Hyperbole taken to the utmost thanks to the bottomless well of transportation enthusiasm. (Picture books. 2-4) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

PreS-Gr 1--Detlefsen and Neubecker's ode to moving vehicles breaks no new ground but will likely appeal to small vehicle fans everywhere. There is no plot. It is a series of observations and superlatives of fantasy experiences piloting various vehicles: "Trains are cool./Watching a train is very cool./But conducting a train through the mountains?/Chugga Chugga Awesome!" And so it goes through diggers, planes, subways, boats, monster trucks, rockets, and finally a camper, which begs the question: "Wait! Are campers cool?" Apparently they are, but "traveling across the…country with your family…Now THAT'S awesome!" Detlefsen plays with different superlatives, adjectives, and onomatopoeic words to get her point across, and while some of the choices are unusual, the use of varied vocabulary is welcome. The illustrations, created digitally with watercolor and pencil, are full bleed and use page turns effectively. A set of facing illustrations depicts watching, then riding; then comes a spread with the child piloting, and the words in huge, curved letters. The protagonist and his family are light-skinned, but others in the illustrations are of various skin tones. The large, bright illustrations are eye-catching and will work equally well one-on-one or in a group read-aloud. VERDICT A pleasant additional purchase to expand collections on this perennially popular topic.--Amy Lilien-Harper, Wilton Lib., CT