I Stink!

Starred review from February 18, 2002
A rowdy, ravenous New York City garbage truck is the unlikely—and thoroughly engaging—narrator of this comical collaboration by the creators of Hey Pipsqueak!
and Nutcracker Noel. "Know what I do at night/ while you're asleep?" asks the brazen vehicle, "Eat your TRASH, that's what." The perspective then shifts so that readers look outside from within the truck's tail end, as garbage bags hurl through the air and land inside its "hopper." As the truck rolls around town, ingesting garbage, he saucily asks, "Did I wake you?/ Too bad!" Jim McMullan's whimsically exaggerated art humorously reflects the personality of this hero, whose windshield serves as bulging eyes and whose bumper becomes an enormous set of teeth. As the trash inside his belly gets compacted, a full spread records his loud "BURRRP!" (indicated in large red typeface that stretches across the gutter). The truck contentedly ("Ahhhhhh!") announces that he now has room for "alphabet soup," and presents a gratifyingly gross ABC of items that he devours: from "apple cores" to "dirty diapers,... fish heads,... kitty litter,... puppy poo,... ugly underpants..." and "zipped-up ziti with zucchini." He freely admits to his stench, then reminds readers, "Go on,/ hold your nose,/ but think about it—/ Without me?/ You're on Mount Trash-o-rama, baby," as only skyscraper tops (including the Chrysler Building) clear the pictured mound of refuse. After the fellow unloads his contents on a river barge (with a "PLOP!"), he heads back to the garage ("See you tomorrow night, guys"), while kids will eagerly return to the beginning of this hilarious homage to an unsung hero. Ages 4-8.

Starred review from May 1, 2002
PreS-Gr 2-An enthusiastic garbage truck describes the hearty joys of its daily rounds. The personified vehicle, with windows as eyes and a grille mouth, is appropriately unapologetic for the noises and smells that come with the territory. After filling up with trash ("Whoa, those bags are way compacted"), it gives a loud burp, followed by an "alphabet soup" list of items it digests, including "Dirty diapers," "Puppy poo," and "Ugly underpants." Varied perspectives; the creative use of light; and a palette of grays, blues, greens, and yellow visually capture the rewards of garbage collecting in an appealingly gross package. The text appears in letters of assorted size, color, and boldness that aptly fit the lively directness of the narrative. The truck's brash good humor shows in its toothy grin and expressive eyes, but the human qualities do not detract from its obvious truckish essence. When it proudly admits that it stinks ("Whooooo-whee! Do I ever!"), the truck asks readers where they would be without it. The answer appears on the following spread with a garbage-covered city. The simple, but distinctive voice of the narrating vehicle makes this a fun and funny read-aloud, especially for young truck enthusiasts.-Steven Engelfried, Beaverton City Library, OR

Copyright 2002 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2002
Ages 4-8. "Know what I do while you're asleep?" asks a grinning truck in an opening spread, "Eat your TRASH." This boldly illustrated book celebrates the garbage truck's noise and grinding power in a brisk, lively text filled with sound effects. The truck describes its night rounds with its crew, including an amusing "A to Z" of garbage, from "apple cores" to "puppy poo" to "zipped-up ziti with zucchini." Finally, the vehicle dumps its load at a river barge and heads home. The importance of its job comes through clearly: "Without me? You're on Mount Trash-o-rama, baby." But mostly this is just a loud, gleeful portrait of a big machine at work, illustrated with pictures that are just the right blend of heavy paint, dark colors, and whimsical humor to show the gritty, urban landscape and the swaggering, macho truck. For children who wonder what happens to the trash after it hits the barge, suggest Paulette Bourgeois' "Garbage Collectors "(1998) or Paul Showers' revised "Where Does the Garbage "Go? (1994). (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2002
The garbage truck who narrates this down-and-dirty picture book is not a demure figure. His job description, which he outlines with healthy machismo, requires him to roar through the streets at night, doing work most people find repugnant. But without him? "You're on Mount Trash-o-rama, baby." The artist's heavily outlined depiction of the hulking beast on his nightly rounds amplifies the text's brash tone.

(Copyright 2002 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)