Tow-Truck Pluck

by Annie M.G. Schmidt, David Colmer (Translator), Glenn Banks Dds (Illustrator)

Overview

Pluck has a little red tow truck. He drives it all over town looking for a place to live. Then Dolly the pigeon tells him that the tower of the Pill Building is empty. In the Pill Building, Pluck meets Mr. Penn and Zaza the cockroach.

Pluck makes lots more friends and solves all kinds of problems. But the biggest problem is Dove Grove. It used to be a garden with tall trees, but it has been neglected and gone wild. Grown-ups never go there, but the kids from the Pill Building love playing there. But now the Park Superintendent has decided to chop down the trees to make a paved square. Pluck and his friends try to save Dove Grove. But first he has to rescue Longmount from the canal.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781782691129
Publisher:	Steerforth Press
Publication date:	01/10/2017
Pages:	200
Sales rank:	345,038
Product dimensions:	7.70(w) x 9.70(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Annie M.G. Schmidt (1911-95) was regarded as the Queen of Dutch Children's Literature and her books have been an essential part of every Dutch childhood for the last fifty years. She trained as a librarian but burst onto the literary scene whenthe newspaper she was working for discovered her gift for children's verse.. Having won numerous awards during her lifetime, including the1989 Hans Christian Andersen Award, Schmidt is now included in the Canon of Dutch History taught to all Dutch schoolchildren, alongside Spinoza, Anne Frank and Vincent van Gogh.

David Colmer has won several international awards for his translations of Dutch and Flemish novels, poetry and children's books. He has translated much of Annie M.G. Schmidt's work.

Editorial Reviews

"Written with understated wit, the story includes such elements of fantasy as talking animals, magical berries, and young Pluck’s enviable independence. Colorful, stylized illustrations appear on every double-page spread. Reminiscent of the Provensens’ artwork in style, they have a quirky charm that suits the narrative perfectly. This book has a fresh, inviting look. . . imaginative." — Carolyn Phelan, Booklist

"The low-key charm of this story was a treat from start to finish. The droll illustrations of Schmidt's long-time collaborator Fiep Westendorp are a welcome and essential element in that charm... Disarming and sweet, the book also has a genuinely complex worldview, with a strong pro-environmental and anti-authoritarian attitude balanced rather surprisingly by a practical realization that we can't all goof off and play or who would put out fires or bake the bread people need? ... Sly and smart and not so easy to pigeonhole." — Michael Giltz, BookFilter

From the Publisher

04/01/2017
Gr 2–4—Considered a classic children's book in the Netherlands (originally published in 1971), this title has been translated into English for today's children and includes the wonderful original illustrations. The tale begins with Pluck and his tow truck in a large city trying to find a home. Discovering that every home is taken, Pluck decides to spend the night in the city park when Dolly, a "beautiful fat pigeon," tells him about available space in a tower at the Pill Building, and Pluck quickly takes up residence. He soon meets the building's occupants: Mrs. Brightner, a germophobic older woman who carries a can of disinfectant with her wherever she goes; the Stamper family, a father and six small sons who have carpeted their floor with mattresses so as not to get in trouble with Mrs. Brightner, who lives below them; a cockroach named Zaza; and a host of other quirky, endearing characters. Pluck befriends Mrs. Brightner's daughter, Aggie, and involves her in some of his many adventures. The biggest moment comes when Pluck and his friends try to save Dovey Gardens from being cleared and paved, which would destroy the homes of a multitude of animals, some of them relatives of Pluck's friends. The book is divided into short, heavily illustrated chapters. The writing is reminiscent of that of Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle or Pippi Longstocking. Pluck always manages to save the day, and his tow truck comes in handy. Funny and endearing, this is a story to read, enjoy, and share. Some may be put off by the illustrated cover, which gives the impression that this selection is aimed at a younger audience, but if booktalked, this title could be unputdownable in the right hands. VERDICT Pluck is, indeed, a very plucky character with wild escapades that won't be forgotten. Recommended for large library collections.—Kathy Kirchoefer, Henderson County Public Library, NC

School Library Journal

2017-02-01
In a set of popular tales from a Hans Christian Andersen Award-winning author, a young lad arrives in town with nothing but a tow truck and finds a home as well as friends both human and animal.First published beginning in 1971 but available in the United States for the first time, the 40 episodic chapters largely chronicle a series of rescues. Hardly has Pluck (originally "Pluk") settled into a vacant apartment atop the Pill Building than he's saved shy cockroach Zaza from poisoning, gotten young neighbor Aggie away from her neatnik mother, and rescued Dizzy, a squirrel afraid of heights, from a treetop. With his red truck and help from adult friends, plus a sea gull with a wooden leg, an invisible Tootenlisp that lives in a seashell, a pigeon that can poop with pinpoint accuracy, and the aptly named Stampers—six rambunctious boys and their single dad—he goes on to other exploits. These include plucking a sea gull from an oil slick, preventing a patch of woodland from being paved over, and responsibly chopping down a magic bush whose berries make grown-ups ignore fires and other emergencies in favor of horsing around like children. Westendorp, the original illustrator, adds jaunty, full-color scenes featuring an all-white cast of dot-eyed (usually) cartoon figures in mid-20th-century dress. A surprise birthday party for Pluck brings most of the cast back onstage one final time. Young fans of Pippi Longstocking will admire this budding eco-warrior, both for his independence and his determination to help others in need. (Fiction. 9-11)

Kirkus Reviews