Toot Toot Zoom! Book

A funny, fast, and noisy tale about finding friends where you least expect to is the perfect vehicle for reading aloud.

Poor Pierre! He lives all alone at the foot of a mountain, and his heart, how it longs for a friend. Perhaps if he hops in his car — toot, toot, zoom! — he will fi nd a friend on the other side of the mountain! On the road — SCREECH! — he meets Goat, who kindly offers to help. And that, says Pierre, is exactly the sort of thing his friend will do when he finds him! Up, up they zoom, collecting an amiable Sheep and Bear along the way. Will the car make it to the top? Will it get safely down? Will Pierre ever find a friend? Phyllis Root’s wry, cumulative story revs readers up with BIG sound words, while Matthew Cordell's energetic illustrations and a fun, dynamic design keep them happily strapped in for the ride.

Children's Literature

In searching for friends, Pierre discovers that three suitable ones have been there all the time. Lonely living at the foot of a mountain; Pierre hops in his zippy red car to travel up and over the mountain to the other side in search of a friend. He bounces along honking his horn at every curve until he comes to a screeching halt because there is a goat in the middle of the road. Goat happily joins him on his quest for a friend. Twice more he is stopped by a sheep and a bear in the road and they too are anxious to join him. Once at the top of the mountain the little car makes a hair-raising ride down the mountainside that results in a terrible crash leaving the little car in pieces. Looking around Pierre realizes that no one lives on that side of the mountain and despairs of ever having a friend. Then he has his eureka moment when his three companions offer to live with him on this side of the mountain. Ah, friendship! This amusing story is just right for a story time share and children will happily shout out the "Toot Toot Zoom" refrain along the way. Creative touches such as having to turn the book vertically to journey up and down the mountain and the friends using pieces of the car to build their new home will keep readers engaged with the pictures. Watercolors outlined in ink have all the verve and energy of Pierre's road trip. Reviewer: Beverley Fahey