All Aboard!, by Mary Lyn Ray, is a nice book discovery for the pre- and elementary-school set. You probably won’t find it on the promotional displays at your local bookstore, though, since it was published back in 2002. Not just another train story, it will appeal also to any child who has a favorite stuffed animal. The book follows the journey of a little girl and her stuffed rabbit, Mr. Barnes, as they journey to visit her grandparents. Most of the story is told from the perspective of the rabbit, who transforms to human size via the girl’s imagination. He is as real to her as any of her fellow passengers. Ray then further blurs the line between imagination and reality, and the rest of the passengers become pigs, moles, hippos, and other animals, all enjoying their travels along with Mr. Barnes.
Ray’s prose echoes the rhythm of the train without falling into singsong monotony. Her observations are poetic and apt: “A city slides by, strung with lights in the night.” Amiko Hirao’s illustrations also sway and swerve, and the cramped perspective parallels the confined interior of the train.
The little girl in the story is black, which makes the book doubly unusual. Maybe I’ve just been watching too much Thomas, with its mostly male, all-white (human) cast, but a train story featuring a black girl seems rare. While the grandmother and grandfather she visits are obviously a straight couple, the mother she leaves is alone. She might have a husband, a partner, or be a single mom. The ambiguity (perhaps unintended by the author) makes this book an easy choice for many types of families.
That sounds like a good one. We’ll check it out for sure.