Dig Dig Digging ABC

Originally published in the U.K. in 2015, this noisy vehicular alphabet book takes readers down roads, over and under the waves, and into the skies and beyond. As she introduces bulldozers, express trains, icebreaker ships, and more, Mayo maintains a sturdy beat, complete with plenty of sound effects, that itself creates a sense of forward motion and momentum: for the ever-tricky X, “Extra-big-wheeeled monster truck/ grrhumm, grrhumm, grrhumming./ Fast racing, high jumping, and—/ wham!—crazy wheel-standing.” Ayliffe’s crisp, brightly colored collage-style illustrations match the text’s energy, surveying the vehicles from a variety of perspectives and featuring a cast of toylike farmers, cyclists, construction workers, and other professionals and children, including a boy riding his scooter through a park and a windsurfer “swerve, swerve, swerving” on her board. Ages 4–8. (Aug.)