Maxi the Little Taxi

Elizabeth Upton

It's Maxi the Taxi's first day of work. What fun it is to zip and zoom all around the town! SPLASH go the mud puddles! PLIPPITY-PLOP drips the ice cream and mustard from sticky little fingers! Soon Maxi becomes so grimy and gooey that no one wants to ride with him. Who will help this dirty little taxi discover what he needs most? It's a smart little boy who takes Maxi for a noisy, tickly bath in the car wash!

Date2016

ISBN0545798604

ISBN-139780545798600

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Reviews

"It’s the first day on the job for this shiny new taxi, and he’s ready to roll. “Maxi ZIPPED here. He ZIPPED there. He ZIPPED everywhere—From the park, to the river. And back to the square. He ZOOMED up. He ZOOMED down. HE ZOOMED all around town. Splashing in every big puddle he found!” His passengers drip ice cream and mustard on his seats, and a pigeon leaves its mark as well—soon poor Maxi is filthy, both inside and out. Then a spotless girl taxi sidles up and says, “You’d better wash up, Mr. Gooey-Goo. Or no one will want to ride with you!” Sure enough, everyone ignores him, leaving him in tears until a boy and his mother hop in. At the young rider’s insistence, they go to a car wash, which proves somewhat traumatic for the little guy. As he peers into the “mouth” of the big pink car wash, he’s afraid he’ll be eaten “like a yellow gumdrop!” Soon, the exhausted car heads back to his friend, Mr. Buddy, at the garage and tells him about his day. After a final polish, he closes his eyes and falls asleep. The anthropomorphized cab is quite adorable, with two black eyes peering out the front window and a big smile on his front end. Cole’s bright palette and lively, appealing illustrations are the perfect complement to the rhyming text, which is filled with onomatopoeia and amusing details sure to delight young readers. VERDICT Pair this title with Debra and Sal Barracca’s Adventures of Taxi Dog(Dial, 1990) for units on city life or transportation. A great bedtime story." —school library journal -- –Barbara Auerbach, New Y

"What a sweet book! Ms. Upton's main character, Maxi, is believable and charming. A brand-new taxi excited to be out in the world...but some (non-threatening!) challenges put a damper on Maxi's adventures...until a concerned hero saves the day. The rhymes are terrific--reminiscent of Dr. Seuss's playful inventions--and the beautiful illustrations by Henry Cole perfectly complement the story. This is a great read-aloud story for the young ones, and for a new reader, the inventive prose will keep their tongue twirling. Nicely done, and I look forward to more adventures by Elizabeth Upton." —Mark F -- Customer Review, Amazon.com