cover image Night Sky Wheel Ride

Night Sky Wheel Ride

Sheree Fitch, illus. by Yayo. Tradewind (Orca, dist.), $16.95 (32p) ISBN 978-1-896580-67-8

Fitch and Yayo capture the inherent magic of a carnival—and, in particular, the thrill of conquering a ride for the first time—in this giddily imaginative ode to the Ferris wheel. The collaborators, who previously teamed up on If I Had a Million Onions, are entirely in synch with their stylistic leaps. Writing in freewheeling verse, Fitch sets an incantory, anything-is-possible mood from the beginning (“Nighttime falls on the fairgrounds/ Dark’s glitter sparks a dare”), while Yayo’s illustrations push every moment out of the ordinary. As a red-cheeked, crayon-scrawled brother and sister munch cotton candy, a field of pastel cotton candy trees looms behind them; the Ferris wheel itself makes several transformations, first shown with a giant squealing pig at its center (“The wheeeeeel! The wheeeeeel! The whirling wheeeeeel!”), later turning into a giant washing machine (“Let the spinning begin!”) and an apple tree, allowing the children to “drop back down down down to earth” at the end of the ride. Children may clamor for a trip to the carnival after reading, but the book is a satisfying ride in itself. Ages 3–6. (Feb.)