Machines at Work

by Byron Barton

‘With the call of ‘Hey, you guys! Let’s get to work,’ women and men shoulder drills and picks, board cranes and cement mixers, and set their equipment bulldozing and steamrolling across vibrant page spreads. Barton generates the excitement of road and building construction for young sidewalk engineers.’ —BL. 1988 Fanfare Honor List (The Horn Book)
Notable 1987 Children's Trade Books in Social Studies (NCSS/CBC)
Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children 1987 (NSTA/CBC)
1987 Children's Books (NY Public Library)

Genres: Picture Books, Construction, Childrens, Storytime, Trucks, Transport, Juvenile

32 pages, Library Binding

First published September 25, 1987

About the author

Byron Barton is the author and illustrator of many picture books for young children. He has been honored by ALA, SLJ, and Reading Rainbow. He worked as an animator for CBS before he started creating children's books. He is currently making his illustrations completely on the computer.

Reviews

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my son's favorite book as a toddler. I probably read it at least 1000 times. He especially liked it when I made the sound effects for the vehicles and workers. I actually miss this book because it reminds me of such a special time in my and my child's life.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book! Thrill in the powerful use of simple imperative sentences! See every short statement brim with action! Read it in the voice of a 40's propaganda news reel! Add in your own exciting sound effects!

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

First sentence: Hey, you guys! Let's get to work. Knock down that building. Bulldoze that tree. Dig up that road.

Premise/plot: It's not just machines at work in Byron Barton's Machines at Work. Little ones also see construction workers working hard all day.

My thoughts: It doesn't take a lot of words to tell a good story. Though though are just a few words per page, Barton's Machines at Work tells an enjoyable story. The illustrations are also super-simple. In a few illustrations, the construction workers reminded me of duplo people. Speaking of which, this would be a fun story to act out with duplos!

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 3 out of 5
Total: 8 out of 10

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice pictures but the story was not very original.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

The bold lined and colorful illustrations grab the reader's attention. Simple text makes this book a good title for both toddler and preschool storytime. I plan to invite the children to act out each page. Example: Knock down that building. Bulldoze that tree.

[Mary Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Hey, you guys! Let's get to work.” Crew women and men pick up their drills and picks, start up cranes and cement mixers, and set about knocking down buildings, bulldozing trees and dumping rubble. Young children love the bold illustrations, big machinery and clear action of Barton's popular book for toddlers and preschoolers.

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great first book about what happens at a construction site!

[Nicola · Rating 2 out of 5]

Miss 3 and I like to explore different books and authors at the library, sometimes around particular topics or themes. We try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors.

This was a random selection by her as she was attracted to the idea of the big yellow digger. Okay simple picture book about construction vehicles at work.

[D.T.E. Madden · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is really fun to read to your toddler. The structure is easy to read to a kid who is bent on turning the pages fast to see the next image. Try narrating in your own version of "movie preview guy" voice for more fun - especially the part about stopping for lunch. Your toddler will be amazed!

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The quick imperative sentences keep my 1 yo engaged and tell a fun, simple narrative of people doing manual labor. They go to work, have a lunch break, work some more, and go home. The simple, bold, and colorful pictures are great for younger kids and are better than they seem at first glance. I just had to read this four times in a row...

[Alicia Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

For: construction/machine fans; readers looking for a book with action.

Possible red flags: some readers may find the book too complex or have a lot of questions about what the characters are doing.

[Annie Payne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my favorite, but it wasn't terrible.

[Mrs. Cubby Culbertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big equipment! My 4 yr old Grand's favorite!!!

[Sarah Tailor · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 3 year old Loves books about construction trucks. This book was a big hit with him!

[Lee Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bright and bold artwork, very simple and great for early readers. 3/5 stars.

[kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid machines book

[Marilyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is ripped up and Alissa couldn't concentrate on the story. She kept lamenting about the rips.

[Gwen Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bold colors and simple story make this easy for young readers to stay engaged. Pages could easily be skipped to shorten the book if needed without really interrupting the story.

[Ruth Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A day at the construction site.
Great illustrations!

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic for any machine loving little one. Bold illustrations and lots of opportunities to talk about what we're seeing and count.

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be easy to use for a storytime on construction/building.

[Krystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

My three-year-old son loves this board book.

I think it's ridiculous the way children's authors try so hard to make it look like there are an equal number of men and women in blue-collar jobs.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Archer's new favorite book.

[Danielle Joseph · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good introduction to machines and construction jobs.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Typical Byron Barton.

[Kim Redington · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great illustrations as the day begins and the construction workers get to work! Love the vocabulary of all the construction vehicles!

[Kimberly]

1 sentence per page. Childlike illustrations. Very simple but solid colors. Tells the story of a worker's day on the construction site.

[Lynnette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super simple illustrations and words. Perfect for babies and Young toddlers. But even my two year old boy was mesmerized by the machines.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

great for toddlers