Red Light Stop, Green Light Go

Describes all that can be seen on a city street while waiting for a traffic light to change

PreSchool-Grade 1-- An original and colorful picture book. "Green light, yellow light, red light. STOP!" it begins, continuing with double-paged spreads of slapdash cartoons of cars and people stopped at the traffic light. Kulman uses predominantly one or two colors and shades, accented with black, creating pictures that are bursting with energy and motion. People ride skateboards, and sit in limousines, convertibles, and taxis. Animals appear and disappear. A rabbit, a tortoise, a porcupine, and a bird perch on the car hoods, sit inside vehicles, lean on fire hydrants, and plod down the road. Everyone waits until "Red light, yellow light, green light, GO!" and then ". . . no one waits at the traffic light." Although the graphic design and use of line are strong, the skewed perspectives and stylized figures sometimes make the illustrations a little unclear. Nonetheless, their overall effect is one of liveliness and humor, and it works well at a distance. The text is brief and rhythmic, and it is easy to see this book becoming a favorite of very young children, who will memorize it with ease. MacDonald's Red Light, Green Light (Doubleday, 1944; o.p.) is longer and more structured than this rather undisciplined romp, but there is room on the shelves for both of them.
- Judy Constantinides, East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library , LA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This picture book takes as its simple premise "Everyone waits at the traffic light." And so here they are: passenger cars, sporty racing vehicles ("some are fast"), boys on skateboards ("some are slow"), a tow truck, a two-spread-long limousine bearing a motley assemblage and so forth. The fast, short text (seldom more than 10 words to a spread) makes use of kid-pleasing phrases: "Police car sirens say, 'let us through, let us through,' / and fire engines say, 'make way, make way.' " In large, loosely drawn images, Kulman displays a fluid style and a fondness for broad, exaggerated characters--a thug narrowly avoids the cops; a nimble rabbit performs various functions amidst the traffic. The colors, however--which evoke a 1930s lithograph--seem dulled by the gray paper underneath. (Also, the sophistication of Kulman's palette may be lost on the intended audience.) But the elongated figures, sweeping curves and firm lines move across the pages in propulsive fashion, making this a satisfying read-aloud or see-up-close book. Ages 2-5.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.