I'm Smart by Kate and Jim McMullan

This post is contributed by Jamie Holcomb, a reference librarian at the Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales branch of Denver Public Library. She recently co-presented on reader's advisory for beginning readers at CAL's 2017 conference.

Kate and Jim McMullan continue their enchanting series of vehicle books with a school bus. As the "I" narrator, the bus takes very seriously the responsibility to pick up the children, keep them safe, deliver them to school, and pick them up again afterwards. When a construction site causes a delay, the "smart" bus must think fast to keep the children in their seats and still reach school on time.

While the vocabulary includes primarily sight words, other features make it clear that this title is for an adult and child to read together, rather than for the latter to read alone. The decorative font includes a mix of capital and lowercase letters, with some words in color, and words sometimes merge into the illustrations or curve around them. The result, though attractive, is not likely to create a "successful reading experience" for a child learning to read.

Rather than being a Geisel contender, this one is better read to school-age children. The school bus's palpable excitement about their own lights and stop sign and their sense of urgency make I'm Smart fun to read out loud -- to a child, not by a child.