Let's Go!: The Story of Getting from There to Here

by Lizann Flatt, Scot Ritchie (Illustrations)

This fun book takes youngsters on an amazing journey across our continent and through time to discover all the methods humans have used to get from one place to another. From the first “travelers” who crossed the Bering Land Bridge on foot, through steamships, bicycles, cars, and planes, to contemporary space trips, the history of transportation is one of imagination and ingenuity. This lively journey is spiced up by a cute dog who engages readers with “search and find” questions throughout, while a final spread of amazing “Did You Know” facts presents additional information. Lizann Flatt’s lyrical text and Scot Ritchie’s stunning artwork bring this rich history to life for young readers.

Genres: Picture Books, History, Transport, Childrens, Nonfiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published September 28, 2007

About the author

Lizann Flatt has written many nonfiction books and numerous short stories and poems for kids. Her latest picture book series includes COUNTING ON FALL, SORTING THROUGH SPRING, SIZING UP WINTER, SHAPING UP SUMMER. What if animals knew math? The series invites kids to practice primary math skills and learn a bit about nature. Her LET'S GO! THE STORY OF GETTING FROM THERE TO HERE is the history of transportation in North America. It was selected as the Canadian Children's Book Centre's TD Grade One Giveaway book in 2009 and given to over 400,000 grade one kids in Canada. Lizann's work has also appeared in LADYBUG, BABYBUG, and HIGHLIGHTS FOR CHILDREN magazines. She was formerly the editor of Canadian children’s magazine CHICKADEE. Today she lives in rural Muskoka, Ontario, Canada.

Reviews

[C. (Don't blank click my reviews, comment please! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully educational for all youngsters, “Let's Go! The Story Of Getting From There To Here” was published in 2007 by Lizann Flatt and Scot Ritchie. It reached even farther in 2009, when it became part of a program for Canadian book day. It got handed out to all grade one students across our country. I find educational books at a child’s and even a baby’s level, highly worthwhile because there are usually nuggets of information I didn’t recall, or know thoroughly. They are an invaluable refresher on any number of subjects.

The topic of transportation is one of the most basic and very much a no-brainer if anything is. It is the way Lizann breaks down and describes the evolution of our mobility that puts the information and history into the easiest, most retainable summary. We walk, we ride, and then we begin to build more and more sophisticatedly, followed by beginning to fly. Next to well-explained and delineated information, my favourite part about this book is its visual presentation. We don’t stick a page of description next to a coloured drawing. Artistic phrasing is fit into each energetic and lively tableau. Brief words are often shaped around whatever is in each picture, which is creative and distinctive.

Scot’s paintings shine. He has a style I love and have never seen: leaving everything soft, as if you could skate on it. It is so appealing and soothing to our eyes. Each page is exquisite art. Except when he needed to draw a train, for example; there are no lines or edges at all! His style is clearly to shade everything in smoothly. He paints with economy, convincingly conveying complete figures and beautiful landscapes with the fewest strokes possible. I appreciate his work and would love to have portraits by him.

[Heather M Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's Go!: The Story of Getting from There to Here is a wonderful picture book that sweeps young readers on a journey...by canoe, by train, by rocket. Fascinating facts about the history of transportation are paired with an engaging, story-like narration and colourful illustrations.

Let's Go by Lizann Flatt is an excellent introduction to nonfiction suited to the classroom and home libraries. For junior kindergarten and up. Canadian/North American content.

[Kristin Carlson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Explaining that there is more than just car as a way to get around will help the students see they way that they can travel. This book is a fun way to teach about the different ways of transportation. It also shows things that were built in the past but we still use for fun today such as the canoe. The students may have different stories about how they have flown on an airplane or how they went on a train to go somewhere special. This is a great way to bring in personal experiences and even make a craft of a transportation device.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the pictures and the North American context for this week. It is a lovely history of transportation. However, it is not easy to read. Alliterations are overused and clunky feeling. Some phrases rhyme but most don't. There is no consistent rhythm to the text which makes it particularly difficult to to navigate through the tongue-twister like alliterations. After reading once to my kids I tried to go back and read again to see if I could find the flow to the text, but no, my tongue was still tripping.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it. It doesn’t always rhyme but the author likes to build pages and choose words carefully in a way that worked for me.

I didn’t like the way first people disappeared from the story but I liked how they appeared while they were there. And while racial conflict was avoided there was a push for diversity in the pages. The illustrations were cheerful and energetic with a lot going on but big enough to share with a group.

[Maria Y. Calderilla]

An amazing journey across the continent. Learning about the different kinds of tranportations that there have been throughout time.