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Dig!
Dig up rock and dig up clay! Dig up dirt and dig all day!
Mr. Rally and his faithful dog, Lightning, have a busy day ahead of them, but they don't mind. What could be more fun than using a big yellow backhoe to build a pool at the school and a drain for the rain? Follow Mr. Rally through his day as he travels around town, counting from one to five in an irresistible refrain. Marc Rosenthal's colorful, nostalgic illustrations add a bold dimension to the lively text by the husband-and-wife team of Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha. Dig on, Mr. Rally! Dig on, Lightning!
Mr. Rally and his faithful dog, Lightning, have a busy day ahead of them, but they don't mind. What could be more fun than using a big yellow backhoe to build a pool at the school and a drain for the rain? Follow Mr. Rally through his day as he travels around town, counting from one to five in an irresistible refrain. Marc Rosenthal's colorful, nostalgic illustrations add a bold dimension to the lively text by the husband-and-wife team of Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha. Dig on, Mr. Rally! Dig on, Lightning!
30 pages, Board Book
First published May 1, 2004
2 people are currently reading
78 people want to read
About the author
Andrea Zimmerman
28 books21 followersAndrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha are married and have created several children’s books together, including Digger Man, Fire Engine Man and Trashy Town, an ALA Notable Book. Zimmerman was born in Ohio and grew up in New York, Utah and California. When she was young, she loved exploring nature, reading comic books, and riding her horse. She studied fine arts for children in college, then later went back to school at UCLA and became a dentist. Clemesha grew up in England and moved to the United States when he was 16. He always loved playing tennis, drawing and reading. He studied English in college and became an elementary school teacher. Zimmerman and Clemesha live in San Diego, California, with their three sons.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/andrea...
http://us.macmillan.com/author/andrea...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
April 17, 2015
What a great book to read out loud to your 2-year-old dig enthusiast! My guy lives for the dig. He reluctantly lets me dress and feed him in the mornings as a precursor for what is his true passion: DIGGING! We have two excavation sites in our backyard where the digging goes down. Nate digs with everything he's got until his mean mommy makes him come inside for dinner, bath time, and story time. But lately this last part has been okay with Nate because now we have this book! It's about a man who has 5 digging jobs to do. He checks each one off his list (and gives the reader a very good, sneaky little lesson in counting) and then heads home with his dog at the end of a hard day of work. And what does he do when he returns home? What else?! DIGS! Nate and I give this book 5 stars for being a very engaging, age-appropriate, stimulating book about our favorite, fabulous topic. We highly recommend this book!
September 19, 2019
Never a fan of formulaic repetition, I found this one a bit over the top in that respect. I recognize that many think that such repetitiveness reinforces concepts for young children, but it's my belief that it's wasted opportunity to expose them to variety and merely reduces the number of words and creativity to which they're exposed. My oldest child managed to learn to read at a very young age, primarily through exposure to traditionally crafted illustrated storybooks, as well as less formulaic, more engaging material like the works of Dr. Seuss, P.D. Eastman (the neglected hero of first-reader literature), H.A. Ray, Arnold Lobel, and Syd Hoff. The illustrations in Dig! are cute, and my now 4-year-old son did feel proud when he could read the visually digits 1 through 5 on one of the pages.
September 29, 2021
It makes me sad to find books like this fifteen years too late! G would have loved this. It reminds me of "Easy Street," another favorite. Just the right amount of rhyming repetition: enough for a predictable pattern fun to recite, not so much that it becomes tedious.
February 17, 2021
This is from the same authors who wrote Trashy Town and it has the same appeal. Mr. Ralley and his dog Lightning love to dig. Mr. Ralley works hard driving a big yellow backhoe and he has five jobs that must be done by the end of the day. Young readers who enjoyed Trashy Town or simply love diggers will be charmed by this fun picture book: "Dig up rock and dig up clay! Dig up dirt and dig all day!" Keep an eye on Lightning's bone digging acttion! With Rosenthal's detailed and humorous illustrations, this will be a read-aloud favorite.
February 10, 2020
An excellent numbers book for the preschool set, the story repeats numbers 1-5 without becoming overly repetitive. I used this title for a number 5 storytime, and the children really enjoyed counting along.
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May 12, 2021Mr. Rally and his dog, Lightning, dig all day. They have 5 jobs to do, and each one is a little different. With a repeating, rhyming refrain, this one would be a hit with little construction lovers.
October 23, 2025
Mr. Rally and his dog Lightning go to five digging jobs. Mr. Rally uses his yellow backhoe to get the work done, and Lightning does his own digs of discovery on each site. Counting, fun rhyme, and Lightning’s antics make for a fun story. Entertaining illustrations.
March 1, 2018
Lots of repetition with nice illustrations, this one would be fun for a machines, construction, or jobs themed preschool story time.
November 27, 2018
Way too much text for the target audience.
February 6, 2019
Awesome book to read with a 4yo. Loved the whimsical dog throughout the illustrations.
May 2, 2019
Great gift for dad
July 3, 2019
The pictures were funny!
August 1, 2019
Cute! I have to keep this one in mind for a construction storytime.
December 12, 2019
Nice rhyming book for toddler or baby
September 4, 2024
Very cute story that kids in Story Time seemed to enjoy. Mr. Rally and Lightning have a really busy day of digging with their backhoe.
May 13, 2025
Absolutely love reading this book aloud, and I will never get over how all the animals are just standing there waiting patiently for Mr. Rally to level the site for a brand-new zoo.
October 9, 2025
Read at WD Library
February 5, 2009
Dig! by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha
Illustrated by Marc Rosenthal
Published By Silver Whistle Harcourt, Inc
2004
Fiction: Picture Book
Ages 4-8
Dig! tells the story of Mr. Rally, his dog Lightening and his big yellow backhoe. They have five digging jobs that must be accomplished throughout the town they live in. Mr Rally helps to build a bridge, a drain for the train, a pool, a new zoo and clears a road of dirt. The day ends with Mr. Rally and Lightening doing more digging, but this time in his own garden.
The illustrations are cute and do a good job showing action. It is fun to follow Lightening dig up bones, giving the story a little something extra not found in the text.
This book was okay, but I thought it could benefit from a little more tension or suspense during the digging jobs. There was a good deal of repetition and some emphasis on learning to count, so it would definitely be best for younger readers.
Illustrated by Marc Rosenthal
Published By Silver Whistle Harcourt, Inc
2004
Fiction: Picture Book
Ages 4-8
Dig! tells the story of Mr. Rally, his dog Lightening and his big yellow backhoe. They have five digging jobs that must be accomplished throughout the town they live in. Mr Rally helps to build a bridge, a drain for the train, a pool, a new zoo and clears a road of dirt. The day ends with Mr. Rally and Lightening doing more digging, but this time in his own garden.
The illustrations are cute and do a good job showing action. It is fun to follow Lightening dig up bones, giving the story a little something extra not found in the text.
This book was okay, but I thought it could benefit from a little more tension or suspense during the digging jobs. There was a good deal of repetition and some emphasis on learning to count, so it would definitely be best for younger readers.
December 19, 2014
Mr. Ralley and his Dog Lightning have 5 rhyming jobs to do today. A big hit with my preschooler and would be good with a toddler, too-- lots of opportunities to fill in the choruses of "Dig up rock and dig up clay! Dig up dirt and dig all day!" and "Is all the digging done? No!" I'd have liked the character style to be less slightly elongated-- Mr. Ralley and the other characters seem somewhat sausage-shaped, and found the rhythms sometimes forced, but it didn't matter to my son. The travels of this backhoe-driver-for-hire entranced my young fan and got lots of repeat requests. The job numbers are clearly displayed on the signs on the pages, and introduced at the beginning and summarized at the end, so it not only demonstrates numbers 1-5 but models using a checklist. Pair with "I'm Strong!" by the McMullens, or Construction Kitties.
July 9, 2014
I read this book to my 3 year old son, who is currently obsessed with various construction vehicles and he likes this book a lot.
As a parent this book is a good recommendation for the following reasons:
1. The story incorporates counting (1-5) in the story and repeats the counting, it gives the reader various
ways to practice counting throughout the book.
2. It is a rhymer, which means it takes no "timer" to read.
3. The repetitive language is great practice for younger kids and they also understand the set-up of the text.
4. If your wee one likes construction, this book is for you because the illustrations show a variety of construction vehicles
as well as show the various jobs a digger can complete.
5. It is a great "work ethic" book, both Mr. Rally and his dog Lightning are great workers.
As a parent this book is a good recommendation for the following reasons:
1. The story incorporates counting (1-5) in the story and repeats the counting, it gives the reader various
ways to practice counting throughout the book.
2. It is a rhymer, which means it takes no "timer" to read.
3. The repetitive language is great practice for younger kids and they also understand the set-up of the text.
4. If your wee one likes construction, this book is for you because the illustrations show a variety of construction vehicles
as well as show the various jobs a digger can complete.
5. It is a great "work ethic" book, both Mr. Rally and his dog Lightning are great workers.
November 20, 2012
The book Dig! tells the story or Mr. Rally, his dog Lightening, and his big yellow backhoe. Mr. Rally is assigned five digging jobs and they must be accomplished throughout the town in which he lives in. Mr. Rally helps the town to build a bridge, a drain for the rain, clears the road of dirt, dig a new pool and finally, a new zoo. Mr. Rally and Lightening’s day both end with the two of them digging even more, only this time in Mr. Rally’s own garden.
The illustrations in Dig! are cute and simple and show a lot of action. There is a lot of repetition and some emphasis on learning how to count that would make this an easy to read beginner book.
The illustrations in Dig! are cute and simple and show a lot of action. There is a lot of repetition and some emphasis on learning how to count that would make this an easy to read beginner book.
March 1, 2014
Dig is a fun picture book that I really enjoy. Readers meet Mr. Rally and his dog, Lightning.
Readers see the two get excited about digging in the dirt. This one has a repeating refrain: "Dig up rock and dig up clay! Dig up dirt and dig all day!" This refrain is repeated at all five jobs, as is the congratulating refrain of "Good job, Mr. Rally! Good job, Lighting!"
After a long day of work, you might think Mr. Rally would want to go home and relax. And he does, in his own way, I suppose. But at the end of his day, Mr. Rally can still be found digging alongside Lightning. He loves to dig for work and play, of course. He loves to dig at home in his garden.
Readers see the two get excited about digging in the dirt. This one has a repeating refrain: "Dig up rock and dig up clay! Dig up dirt and dig all day!" This refrain is repeated at all five jobs, as is the congratulating refrain of "Good job, Mr. Rally! Good job, Lighting!"
After a long day of work, you might think Mr. Rally would want to go home and relax. And he does, in his own way, I suppose. But at the end of his day, Mr. Rally can still be found digging alongside Lightning. He loves to dig for work and play, of course. He loves to dig at home in his garden.
August 2, 2017
Some rhyming, some number association, and some repetition. Cute.
December 7, 2012
We are always on the look out for truck books that are a bit more than truck books for my 2 year-old son. This is one of them. Dig! is about Mr. Rally and the digging jobs he does with his trusty backhoe and dog Lightning. The jobs are all numbered and Zimmerman numbers them at the beginning, throughout the book, and again at the end. Therefore, it is a great book for counting and recognizing numbers. Plus, if you have a boy like mine, it has the added bonus of having a truck in it.
February 15, 2011
Mr Rally goes to 5 different job sites with his dog, Lightning, to dig and move dirt and clay. Fun easy book that explains what steam shovels and backhoes do at construction sites. Nice book for young children.
April 11, 2013
This books is excellent! It will be perfect for our Unit for summer reading about bulldozers and excavation. We are having a local exaction company come to let us 'play' on their equipment. This book is going to be a great addition!
October 14, 2014
My three (under the age of 5) grandsons are into anything and everything construction. This book is a great addition to our construction themed books. Some repeated phrases, counting, and fun pictures make it a "Read it again, Nana" book.
December 29, 2007
A repetitive phrase is located throughout the book, allowing children to chime in. Preschoolers would be a good audience.
August 16, 2011
Great for a construction or dirt themed Toddler Time.
May 9, 2020
Read at Preschool Story Time at the Tenley library on 6/14/13: http://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com/...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews