All books are in the picture book section unless noted otherwise.
Cars
Aroner, Miriam. Clink, Clank, Clunk! A group of animal friends ride to town in a junky car that has numerous mechanical problems.
Barton, Bryon. My Car. Sam describes in loving detail his car and how he drives it.
Bee, William. And the Cars Go… Features a range of vrooming, chugging, and whispering vehicles driven by characters ranging from a beach-going family and hat-wearing royals to a noisy troupe of schoolchildren and a fretful ice-cream vendor.
Bee, William. Stanley’s Garage. Stanley is working at his garage today. From filling up Hattie’s red sport car with gas to changing the tire on Shamus’ and Little Woo’s blue car, it sure is a busy day. As his friends each come in with their car problems, Stanley knows just what to do to get them back on the road.
Biggs, Brian. Everything Goes: Henry in a Jam. Henry and his parents get stuck in traffic. Luckily, there are plenty of emergency vehicles here to help! (Beginning Reader)
Chriscoe, Sharon. Race Car Dreams. After a day at the track, a race car is tired and ready for bed so he washes his rims, fills up with oil, chooses a book that is all about speed, and drifts off to sleep.
Dotlich, Rebecca Kai. Race Car Count. Count to ten with fast and colorful race cars.
Durand, Hallie. Mitchell’s License. Mitchell never wants to go to bed until, at the age of three years, nine months, and five days he gets his license so that he can drive there – at least until he and the car have a disagreement about what fuel goes in the tank.
Feiffer, Kate. My Side of the Car. Sadie and her father have been planning a trip to the zoo for a long time but something always gets in the way, so when they finally start out and her father sees some raindrops, Sadie insists there is no rain on her side of the car.
Fliess, Sue. Calling All Cars. This bouncy text explores the wonderful world of cars zipping up, down, fast, and slow. And at the end of the day it’s bedtime for these busy cars.
Fliess, Sue. Race! Cars line up for the Winner’s Cup, and with one car smaller than the rest, they all speed down mountains, by waterfalls, through tunnels, and past landslides to the finish line.
Floca, Brian. The Racecar Alphabet. An exciting day at the races highlights the letters of the alphabet as a variety of automobiles burn fuel speeding through the curves of the track.
Harper, Jamie. Miles to Go. Although concerned about a broken horn, young Miles makes his way to preschool in his very own car, with Mom close at hand.
Harper, Jamie. Miles to the Finish. Looking forward to participating in race day at Red Apple School, Miles and Otto discover tough competition in a Speedster-driving girl who becomes Miles’ toughest rival on the track.
Hatanaka, Kellen. Drive: A look at Roadside Opposites. Illustrations depicting a long car trip demonstrate such pairs of opposites as “above” and “below,” “near” and “far,” and “worm’s-eye view” and “bird’s-eye view.”
Hubbell, Patricia. Cars: Rushing! Honking! Zooming! Illustrations and rhyming text celebrate different kinds of cars and what they can do.
Knudsen, Michelle. Big Mean Mike. Mike is proud to be the biggest, toughest dog in the neighborhood, so when tiny, fuzzy bunnies start showing up in his big, mean car he sees them only as a threat to his reputation, no matter how adorable they are.
Leiter, Richard. The Flying Hand of Marco B. Marco is riding in the backseat of a car driven by his parents. Being bored, he puts his hand out the window and fantasizes about flying. As he does so, his fantasy takes him on a wild ride up in the sky.
Milusich, Janice. Off Go Their Engines, Off Go Their Lights. Having completed their daytime tasks, various vehicles get ready for a restful night.
Norman, Kim. This Old Van. After receiving a special invitation, Grandma and Grandpa head out in their hippie van on a journey filled with descriptions that rhyme with the tune of “This Old Man.”
Pearson, Debora. Alphabeep: A Zipping, Zooming ABC. Describes a vehicle or street sign for every letter of the alphabet from Ambulance to Zamboni.
Pizzoli, Greg. Number One Sam. A competitive race-car driving dog learns that some things are more important than being number one.
Root, Phyllis. Toot Toot Zoom! Pierre lives all alone at the foot of the mountain so he hops in his car to find a friend. Will the car make it to the top of the mountain? Will it get safely down? Will Pierre ever find a friend?
Santat, Dan. Are We There Yet? A boy goes on a long car ride to visit his grandmother and discovers time moves faster or slower depending on how bored he is.
Slegers, Liesbet. Vroom! Kevin’s Big Book of Vehicles. Invites young readers to learn about all types of vehicles, including tractors, garbage trucks, fire engines, police cars, motorcycles, and passenger cars.
Stein, Peter. Cars Galore. Cars of all shapes, colors, and sizes–including an igloo ice-fueled polar car and an eco-friendly car that runs on air–are presented in illustrations and rhyme.
Suen, Anastasia. Red Light, Green Light. A young boy creates an imaginary world filled with zooming cars, flashing traffic lights, and racing fire engines.
Wheeler, Lisa. Dino Racing. Illustrations and rhyming text follow dinosaurs as they race against each other in dragsters, then off-road vehicles, and finally stock cars.
Non-fiction books about cars can be found at J 629.2.
Trucks
Anderson, Peggy Perry. Chuck’s Truck. When too many barnyard friends climb in to go to town, Chuck’s truck breaks down, but Handyman Hugh knows just what to do.
Barton, Chris. Mighty Truck. When a muddy truck reluctantly gets a truck wash, he transforms into a superhero.
Barton, Byron. Trucks. Brief text and illustrations present a variety of trucks and what they do.
Beaumont, Karen. Where’s My T-R-U-C-K? Tommy’s not himself today. He’s lost his T R U C K! And no matter what Mom, Dad, sis, brother, and Grandma offer, it’s just not as fun as his best red truck.
Braun, Sebastien. Digger and Tom! The building site will not be ready until one last rock is removed, and although the big machines all have a go at it, only Little Digger has what it takes to get the job done–with some encouragement from Tom, the dump truck.
Bryant, Megan E. Dump Truck Duck. Dump Truck Duck and his friends break ground on a new playground, helping each other overcome obstacles to get the job done.
Clement, Nathan. Drive. In brief text with illustrations, a boy describes his father’s work as a truck driver.
Clement, Nathan. Job Site. The bulldozer, the excavator, the loader and other heavy machinery all have important tasks to accomplish at the job site: digging, lifting, carrying, dumping, moving, shaping.
Cuyler, Margery. The Little Dump Truck. A happy little dump truck, driven by Hard Hat Pete, hauls stones, rocks, and debris from a construction site to a landfill.
Floca, Brian. Five Trucks. Five different trucks do five different jobs to get an airplane ready for takeoff.
Freedman, Claire. Beep, Beep, Beep, Time for Sleep! A group of tired trucks and machines get ready for bedtime after a long day at a building site.
Friend, David. With Any Luck I’ll Drive a Truck. A little boy has a grand time pretending to drive every big vehicle he can imagine.
Goodwin-Sturges, Judy Sue. Construction Kitties. Wearing their hats, Construction Kitties use heavy equipment to dig, move, push, and smooth the dirt.
Hamilton, K.R. Red Truck. When a school bus gets stuck in the mud, Red Truck the tow truck saves the day by pulling it out.
Hines, Anna Grossnickle. I Am a Backhoe. A young boy imagines himself to be different types of trucks as he plays in the sand.
Holub, Joan. Mighty Dads. Told in simple rhyming text, hard-working construction vehicle fathers guide and encourage their children.
Mortensen, Denise Dowling. Wake Up Engines. Rhyming verses describe the sights and sounds of morning traffic as cars, trucks, and airplanes rev up their engines and go!
Rey, Margaret & H.A. Curious George and the Dump Truck. Curious George gets into trouble when he boards a dump truck and spills a load of dirt in a pond but redeems himself when the dirt creates an island for the pond’s ducks.
Rinker, Sherri Duskey. Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site. At sunset, when their work is done for the day, a crane truck, a cement mixer, and other pieces of construction equipment make their way to their resting places and go to sleep.
Rinker, Sherri Duskey. Mighty, Mighty Construction Site. Told in rhyming text, Excavator, Bulldozer, Crane Truck, Dump Truck, and Cement Mixer will all need to work together as they tackle their biggest job yet – a massive building.
Rockwell, Anne F. Truck Stop. A boy and his parents prepare breakfast at their truck stop for drivers of eighteen-wheelers, tankers, moving vans, and other vehicles, while Uncle Marty checks tires and makes repairs.
Sauer, Tammi. Truck, Truck, Goose! Goose is all packed for a picnic, but when he ventures outside his cottage to cross the street to the park, he encounters some problems.
Savage, Stephen. The Mixed-Up Truck. A little cement mixer learns that making mistakes isn’t always a bad thing in this vehicle book.
Savage, Stephen. Supertruck. When the city is hit by a colossal snowstorm, only one superhero can save the day. But who is this mysterious hero, and why does he disappear once his job is done?
Sayres, Brianna Caplan. Where Do Diggers Sleep at Night? Illustrations and rhyming text reveal what trucks, tractors, and construction vehicles do to get ready for bed after a hard day’s work.
Schertle, Alice. Little Blue Truck. A small blue truck finds his way out of a jam, with a little help from his friends.
Schotter, Roni. Go, Little Green Truck! Little Green is a proud and strong pickup truck who loves helping with chores, but when Farmer Gray buys a big new blue truck, Little Green is left to rust in a pasture until the farmer’s daughter, Fern, suggests they fix him up and use him for such gentle jobs as going to the farmers’ market.
Scieszka, Jon. Smash! Crash! Best friends Jack Truck and Dump Truck Dan love to smash things but sometimes their antics get them into trouble. One day they meet Wrecking Crane Rosie. Are Jack and Dan’s smashing days over?
Slack, Michael H. Monkey Truck. Monkey Truck comes racing to the rescue anytime there is trouble in the jungle.
Steggall, Susan. The Diggers are Coming! Uses rhyming text to follow different construction vehicles, including bulldozers, diggers, and trucks, as they build a group of houses.
Sutton, Sally. Roadwork. There are many big machines and busy people involved in building a road, and this picture book, with its rambunctious rhymes and noisy fun, follows them every step of the way, from clearing a pathway to rolling the tar to sweeping up at the end.
Wolf, Sallie. Truck Stuck. Illustrations and simple rhyming text tell the story of a big truck that gets stuck under a bridge.
Non-fiction books about trucks can be found at J 629.224 and 629.225.
Fire Trucks and Firefighting
Beaty, Andrea. Firefighter Ted. When Ted awakens to the smell of smoke and cannot find a firefighter, he decides to become one for the day, much to the dismay of his mother, neighbors, principal, and classmates.
Cuyler, Margery. The Little Fire Truck. A happy little fire truck, driven by Jill, zips all over town helping to put out fires and rescue animals.
Elya, Susan Middleton. Fire! ¡Fuego! Brave Bomberos. A brave group of firefighters set off to battle a blaze at a townhouse. Spanish words interspersed in the rhyming text are defined in a glossary.
George, Lucy M. Firefighter. Easy to read text with rebuses explores the job of a firefighter.
Graham, Thomas. Five Little Firefighters. Even though their dinner is ready to eat, when the fire alarm bell sounds, the firefighters must go out to rescue a family and their cat.
Hubbell, Patricia. Firefighters! Speeding! Spraying! Saving! Illustrations and rhyming text celebrate firefighters and what they do.
McMullan, Kate. I’m Brave! He’s a big red engine with a siren, a horn, a tank full of water, and whole lotta hose! He’s a good-lookin’ fire truck, and he’s brave, too. When the alarm sounds, he’s gotta drive through smoke and heat straight to a blazing fire!
Meier, Joanne D. The Fire Truck Adventure. A simple story belonging to the fourth level of Herbster Readers, young Herbie has an imaginary adventure on a fire truck after local firefighters visit his school. (Beginning Reader)
Murray, Laura. The Gingerbread Man Loose on the Fire Truck. When the Gingerbread Man joins the children who made him on a school field trip to a fire station, he escapes being eaten by Spot the Dalmatian and rides along to a fire.
Rockwell, Anne F. At the Firehouse. Jason, who loves fire engines, goes to the firehouse on Visitor’s Day and learns all about being a firefighter.
Teague, Mark. Firehouse! Edward and his cousin Judy come for a visit to the firehouse and learn how everything works, with some unexpected results.
Zimmerman, Andrea Griffing. Fire Engine Man. A young boy imagines the work he will do and the safety gear he will wear when he becomes a fireman someday, as his younger brother first watches then joins him on the job.
Non-fiction books about fire engines can be found at J 628.925.
Trains
Awdry, W. Thomas the Tank Engine Thomas the tank engine and his friends. (Series)
Brown, Margaret Wise. Two Little Trains. Two little trains, one streamlined, the other old-fashioned, puff, puff, puff, and chug, chug, chug, on their way West.
Crews, Donald. Freight Train. Brief text and illustrations trace the journey of a colorful train as it goes through tunnels, by cities, and over trestles.
Gurney, John Steven. Dinosaur Train. Jesse imagines riding on a train where all the passengers and workers are dinosaurs.
Ichikawa, Satomi. My Little Train. A little train goes for a ride, taking all the stuffed animals where they want to go.
Lindeen, Mary. Trains. Simple text and supportive full-color photographs introduce young readers to trains. (Beginning Reader)
McMullen, Kate. I’m Fast! Two trains race each other on the way to Chicago.
Mortensen, Denis Dowling. Wake Up Engines. Rhyming verses describe the sights and sounds of morning traffic as cars, trucks, and airplanes rev up their engines and go!
Petersen, Jessica. Old Tracks, New Tricks. Finally able to join a train track of their own, Trixie, Tracky, and Tinker are disappointed to find that bossy trains rule while the old tracks lay, until they decide to teach the old tracks some new tricks.
Piper, Watty. The Little Engine that Could. Although she is not very big, the Little Blue Engine agrees to try to pull a stranded train full of toys over the mountain.
Rey, Margaret & H.A. Curious George Takes a Train. While waiting for the man with the yellow hat to buy train tickets, Curious George causes trouble by mixing up numbers on the schedule, but he makes up for it when a little boy’s toy rolls toward the tracks.
Roth, Carol. All Aboard to Work—Choo-Choo! Animal mothers and fathers with various professions take the train to work and return at the end of the day to spend time with their children.
Ryan, Phillips. Steam-Powered Trains. Introduces steam trains and describes how they work and what jobs they perform.
Sarcone-Roach, Julia. Subway Story. Jessie, a subway car “born” in St. Louis, Missouri, enjoys many years as an important part of the New York City subway system, and after she is replaced by more modern cars she begins another important job.
Sayres, Brianna Caplan. Where Do Steam Trains Sleep at Night? Imagines the bedtime rituals of different types of trains.
Townend, Jack. A Railway ABC. Uses behind-the-scenes information on railroads to teach young readers the alphabet.
Vamos, Samantha R. Alphabet Trains. Simple text uses railroads to teach children about different trains and the alphabet.
Wickberg, Susan. Hey Mr. Choo-choo, Where are You Going? A train engine hauls his cars from the city to the sea, answering questions about what he is pulling, seeing, and hearing along the way.
Non-fiction books about trains can be found at J 625.1
Planes and Other Transportation
Braun, Sebastien. Toot and Pop! Little tugboat Pop is happy to help the big boats like Toot out of the harbor–even if Toot thinks he can do it himself.
Cotter, Bill. Hello, Airplane! Illustrations and easy-to-read text follow an airplane as it says good-bye to the ground and hello to the sky, where it flies over a town, mountains, clouds, and people.
Cousins, Lucy. Maisy Goes on a Plane. Maisy is off on a journey to see her friend Ella, but Ella lives such a long way away. Maisy must go by plane and what an exciting trip it is!
Crews, Donald. School Bus. Follows the progress of school buses as they take children to school and bring them home again.
Docherty, Thomas. Little Boat. One brave little boat is on a journey to discover the seven seas. Setting off into the big, wide world, Little Boat runs into treacherous waters, turbulent tides, and seafaring friends. After all his nautical adventures, our hero finds out that he’s no longer such a little boat.
Houran, Lori Haskins. Busy Tractors, Busy Days. Tractors are busy machines. See the big jobs they do each day! (Beginning Reader)
London, Johnathon. A Plane Goes Ka-Zoom! Easy-to-read, rhyming text describes the sounds of, and uses for, different kinds of airplanes.
Lyon, George Ella. Planes Fly! Illustrations and easy-to-read rhyming text celebrate different kinds of planes, their instruments, what they carry, and what it is like to go for a flight.
Meadows, Michelle. Traffic Pups. Canine motorcycle police officers zoom through the town pursuing suspects, clearing the road of accidents, and serving as escorts.
Rosen, Michael. The Bus is For Us! In rhyming text, an exuberant cast of kids express their travel preferences while ultimately agreeing that the bus is the best ride of all because it’s designed for everyone to share.
Savage, Stephen. Little Plane Learns to Write. Little Plane learns to write by practicing his skywriting.
Singer, Marilyn. I’m Your Bus. In rhyming text, a school bus describes its busy day transporting children to and from school.
Slegers, Liesbet. Vroom! Kevin’s Big Book of Vehicles. Invites young readers to learn about all types of vehicles, including tractors, garbage trucks, fire engines, police cars, motorcycles, and passenger cars.
Steggall, Susan. Following the Tractor. Follows the story of a tractor as it plows, sows, and harvests the fields throughout the course of a year, with a little help from some other farm machinery.
Van Lieshout, Maria. Flight 1-2-3. A boy counts his way through the airport and onto the plane as it flies towards its destination.
Non-fiction books about planes can be found at J 629.1
Non-fiction books about motorcycles can be found at J 629.227
