Trains

by Byron Barton

Passenger trains
and electric trains.
Here come the trains.
All aboard!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Trains, Transport, Juvenile, Nonfiction, Kids

32 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1986

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

[Leah Irby · Rating 2 out of 5]

I HATE these Barton books, but Judah loves the crap out of them. But, since this is my Goodreads account I get to tell it like it is.

[Aubrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 19-month-old son is obsessed with this book right now. I read it to him no less than 12 times yesterday (we just got it from the library yesterday), and he has 'read' it on his own at least as many times since. Little boys and their trains, who knew?

[Mama Bibliosoph · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little board book is an old classic that many 80s children will remember instantly from their own childhoods. The illustrations are high-contrast and favor primary colors, and so grab attention easily. The cartoon-like nature of the book makes Trains perfect book for playing I Spy, because without being too cluttered there are lots of setting elements that pop out.

What's great about this book's text is its use of full, descriptive sentences that still keep the economy of words to a minimum. It's easy to point to the pictures and deliver the clear, declarative text like "Here are the freight cars. The caboose is last."

But what makes this book special for all its simplicity is how unusual it is for a book like this to be so filled with people--passengers riding trains, workers fixing the track, an engineer driving the train, passengers waiting at the station, and a conductor helping them board. For a child with autism who fixates on trains, and may not be as socially inclined, it's good to see how trains connect to people.

****
I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is from a longer blog post about great books for kids who really love trains: http://www.lineupthebooks.com/obsesse...

[Ginelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

A short book with easy text and simple illustrations. It introduces a number of different types of trains, giving their names, and sort of follows a commuter train as it travels down the track and to the station.

Overall, this is a decent book and there’s nothing really wrong with it. The sentences are nice an simple and could probably be used as a ‘learn to read’ book. But it’s nothing fantastic, I would much prefer that it follow the storyline of the commuter train more closely so the sequence of events is more clear to children.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goes through trains. Very simple text. "Here are the freight cars. The caboose is last. Here is a steam engine puffing smoke" and also identifies an electric train by the wires. Then it has people fixing the track and a conductor driving past a town and to a train station. Cute book. No rhymes, but still very simple and if you have a train lover, they will likely enjoy this book.

[Villain E · Rating 3 out of 5]

A train book for little ones. Simple, flat colors. Shows different types of trains and some of the aspects of working on trains. Practical and informative, relative to other books for this age group.

[Abby · Rating 2 out of 5]

My baby didn’t feel like she was learning much new about trains from this board book and tried to slam it shut many times while I read it to her. Not a v engaging book for me either tbh so I can’t blame her 🤷🏼‍♀️

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute book about trains appropriate for, maybe, an 18-month old. The version that I have is too small for story time, but it would be a good storytime book for young children.

[kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple solid

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of my children have loved this book! It is colorful and fun to spot the passenger train on each two page spread.

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is very comfortable as it’s the exact same setup as planes. This is a very telling, not showing book.

[Mikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bold simple illustration. Human subjects appearing in pictures are diverse. Early nonfiction on trains.

[Miss Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple and clear picture book about a train loading up and taking off. Toddler and up

[McGee Lapish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Make sure to ask kids to look for all the little hidden objects!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son wants to read this book again and again!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic nonfiction board book about trains. Bright colors and simple text make this a useful preschool concept book for units about transportation.

[Zaid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read! Loved it! 🚂🚂

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming, like all of the author's books.

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple picture book about trains with Byron Barton's signature illustrations.

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has bright illustrations, simple bold text, and shows the process of trains for very young readers. The book looks outdated but otherwise it’s a good book for very young children.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing, imaginative, and fun to read.

[Cassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 solid illustrations

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence: On the track the trains are running. Here is a train with people inside.

Premise/plot: Trains by Byron Barton introduces little ones to multiple types of trains. Passenger, freight, steam, electric. The text is simple, but not as simple as Freight Train.

My thoughts: The very fact that this book is NOT Freight Train might make it appealing to parents who've spent weeks or months reading Freight Train. I did like it. I think it makes a good read aloud. Love the amount of text on each page. The illustrations are very bold, basic colors.

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

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Turkeybird Speaks: "Now this is the part where I tell you to pull up a chair and your favorite snack so you can settle into a great book. Does it really get any better than trucks, planes, and trains? I would say not! They move, they have wheels, they go fast and they do all sorts of fun things. I especially liked reading my plane book when we traveled cross country to our new home. It was neat to look out the window and see the same sky that I was looking at in my book. These books are a must have for every home. Go get them!"

Mom's Two Cents: "I have to agree with The Turkeybird and the publishers summary. We initially purchased the Trucks book when he was very little and it instantly became a favorite. Now that he is quite a bit older (at least two years have passed) he still picks them out of our full bookshelf. As he mentioned, we traveled by plane this last summer to move from the DC area to California and the Planes book was a huge hit! There are images of people getting on and off planes in the book and because of the small airport we initially left from, we were able to get aboard the plane just as they did in the book, which he loved! And though you would think these books wouldn't appeal to girls, even The Littlebug picked the Plane book out yesterday as her book of choice.

"Now, onto the technical side of the book. What I, as a parent, really like about these books are the simple text and straight forward images. It's not going to be the most beautiful book on your shelf, nor will the words be drawn out and elaborate, but it still holds an entertainment and educational value I can't deny. Each page has between 3 to 5 words with a simple illustration demonstrating the text. For smaller kids it can often times be overwhelming to have a book filled with words and dramatic images, but these books though not elegant are still captivating. I highly recommend these books for beginning readers and even for older children who may need a respite between larger, more complicated books."

[Gabrielle DeLucia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This child-friendly picture book titled, "Trains" by Byron Barton allows children to learn all about passenger and electric trains. Children learn about specific vocabulary words pertaining to trains such as engineer, passengers, wires, steam engine, conductor, freight, and caboose. Children are also exposed to ways in which trains are used; for example, for personal travel, to transport freight, or as children interact with trains on a daily basis in their everyday life. The illustrations used in this book are very colorful, bright, and simple. The author's use of diction throughout the book was excellent as he introduced students to sight words and illustrations which represented various types of trains in different settings. This was an excellent picture book, appropriate for children ages 3-7 years old. Other books I might pair with this book would relate to the topic of transportation. Some other books about transportation by Byron Barton include: Planes and Boats. In regards to social justice covered in the book: Both genders are represented fairly in the book. The illustrator also includes people of all ages and ethnicity in the picture book as well.

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This little "board book" provides a clear, bright, and simple introduction to trains. I like to think of these little books as "conversation starters". For instance, the first double-page spread shows a train track on a green field and the text is--"on the trackr". I hold up the book and ask, "What to trains need for their wheels to ride on?" or "What do you see?" When sharing with babies I'd say, "I see grass" and "I see tracks." Or I could play "I spy with my little eye" with them.

The technical term for this type of engagement is DIALOGIC READING and it actually helps children become ready to read. Besides, it's fun. Here's a link to a video clip about this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-Xlb...

The last page says "All aboard" which I like to have the children repeat with me.

[Larysa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Trains is a picture book for young children. It is a concept book about different trains. The colors in this in book were bright, but I do not think they did a good job of showing what the words were saying. An example of this is when the words would talk about a specific train, there were be multiple trains of different styles, so it might be difficult for a child to infer which one the words are talking about.

[Asho · Rating 3 out of 5]

I checked out all four of the Byron Barton transportation books from our library because I thought their small size would make them ideal for bringing along on a road trip. Frankly, I find these books a little dull to read aloud, but obviously they reach their target audience, because my 2.5 year-old was impressed. He can sit and "read" this book for a surprisingly long time, which means it fulfilled its purpose for me.

[Karawan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son(9 months) picked this out himself at the library. He really seemed to enjoy it. It's very simple language and the illustrations are in nice bold colors that held his attention. I don't think he really knows anything about trains, but he liked the book enough that it made me want to take him to the train station and show him the real thing.

[jacky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like all of these books by Barton (Boats, Airplanes, Trains). We read this with William, as he is starting to like trains. He liked pointing to the trains, but didn't really like the end portion as much. Story was still a bit too informative for him at the point. Natalie heard it once, too, and she liked.