Motor Miles - Softcover

John Burningham

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1782955550 ISBN 13: 9781782955559

Publisher: Red Fox Picture Books, 2017

Synopsis

Miles is a very difficult dog... Until he is given his very own motor car and learns to love the open road!

This enigmatic story is a joy to read, gently exploring the transformational power of freedom. John''s distinctive, expressive artwork is stunning, whether it''s his instantly recognisable characters or the expansive, contemplative spreads of colour, as Miles discovers the joys of the road. This is a story that children will immediately engage with, while parents absorb the magically nostalgic air and subtle celebration of change and growing up.

About this title

About the Author

John Burningham is one of the world’s most recognized and beloved illustrators. He has received two Kate Greenaway Medals and countless other awards, including a Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor for It’s a Secret! Over his fifty-year career, John Burningham has written and illustrated more than thirty picture books, including Picnic and The Way to the Zoo, and has also illustrated the work of other authors, such as Kenneth Grahame and Ian Fleming. John Burningham and his wife, Helen Oxenbury, live in North London.

Review

From Burningham's first droll lines paired with his expressively simple illustration, readers will know they are in for a rare treat—a book whose strong substance and story eschew gimmick and gloss and whose mastery of visual and narrative understatement shines throughout...No one does whimsy like Burningham; no one.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

The matter-of-fact narration makes the story of a car-driving dog entirely believable. The watercolor, pen, and pastel illustrations perfectly capture Miles’s postures and expressions to reveal his opinions and emotions. The spreads of the two friends traveling through panoramas of the four seasons underscore their joy and camaraderie. This whimsical tale of friendship will delight Burningham fans and deserves serious consideration for a place in most collections.
—School Library Journal (starred review)

That master of picture book fantasies involving vehicles, children, and animals (Mr. Gumpy’s Outing, rev. 2/72; Mr. Gumpy’s Motor Car, rev. 8/76) returns, to utterly endearing effect...As always, Burningham controls pacing through a mix of vignettes, full-page illustrations, and double-page spreads; his pen-and-ink and watercolor drawings, in all their skillful lack of polish, are maximally expressive. A paean to difficult dogs and their owners, everywhere.
—Horn Book

Burningham’s matter-of-fact text and blithely inked illustrations embrace the comedy of the premise while capturing the close-knit relationship between boy and dog—especially when they’re tooling across an empty beach at sunrise.
—Publishers Weekly

Burningham has created another hilarious story for kids that will energize their imaginations and have them wondering, "what if?"
—Reading Eagle (syndicated from Kendal Rautzhan)

It’s terrifically absurd – and thrilling...In looking back on the year 2016 in picture books, I know I will remember Norman’s hair flying in the breeze, as Miles drives him down the shore.
—Kirkus Reviews (blog)

Edition details

• Publisher: Red Fox Picture Books
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1782955550
• ISBN 13: 9781782955559
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 32