It is beautiful seeing your child run to a bookcase, grab a book and plop into your lap for story time. As a parent this act tugs at my heartstrings, until I see that my son has chosen the picture book of trains that we have already read 100 times. Every parent has a limit.
Local author Matthew Porter has come to the rescue with his new book Monkey World: The Thunderbolt Express, due out Sept. 24, which does include a train, but also delights with a cast of kooky monkeys on a page-turning adventure. When I snuck this book on the shelf to test it out on my son, he took the bait.
He happily sat in my lap and opened the cover to reveal illustrations that are simultaneously vibrant, detailed and playful. It is evident from page one that Matthew Porter is an accomplished artist. Lured in by the illustrations, we jumped aboard the Thunderbolt Express with Mayday the detective, Oscar the magician and Jango Jenkins and his Dixieland Band, all monkeys donning fabulous outfits complete with bowties and bolo hats.
As I contemplated telling my husband to take some style cues from these trendy primates, my son flipped the page to watch Thunderbolt chug out of the city toward tulip fields reminiscent of the Skagit Valley.
Then, "uh-oh," the engine driver discovers that there is a gap in the tracks. The train barrels toward a crocodile-infested river without a bridge. My son eagerly turned the page to find out the fate of the funky monkeys and the train itself. With a little ingenuity Jango Jenkins and his fellow passengers make it safely to the next station where they rejoice in the thrill of their adventure. My son turned back to page one and "choo choo" we joined the adventure again.
The Thunderbolt Express is Matthew Porter's first book for older children, ages 4 to 8. In it, Porter successfully combines a page-turning plot with illustrations as captivating as the ones in his toddler books ABC and Count the Birdies. Readers will be happy to hear that The Thunderbolt Express is the first in a series of adventures that will take place in the stylish adventureland of Monkey World. We haven't seen the last of Jango Jenkins.
Seattle's Child talked to Porter about his creative process and his favorite family activities around Seattle. Read the story here.
Alison Behnke is a Seattle freelance writer and mother of a train-obsessed toddler.
