Noodles on a Bicycle

Dynamic spreads by Zhang pulse with energy as they capture the casual grace of Japan’s demae—cycling food deliverers—who, from the 1930s to the 1970s, per an end note, balanced stacked trays loaded with “ceramic soup bowls and wooden soba boxes” on one shoulder while piloting their bicycle with the other hand. Maclear describes their feats via the voice of a group of neighborhood children who look up to the cyclists, taut lines echoing the tension behind their work: “They are artists./ Architects./ Tough talkers./ Speedy spinners.// But mostly,/ they are acrobats.” The children try balancing trays and dishes themselves, only to “Rattle,/ wobble.../ clatter,/ crash!” As the day wears on, the figures cast long shadows that underline the job’s difficulty: “What is it like to work outside all day,/ cycling for a living,/ the dusk air hot and heavy and/ sticky like honey?” At dinnertime, the appearance of another deliveryman brings a surprise. In this buoyant work from the previous collaborators (The Big Bath House), lively language honors long-honed skills worth remembering, while ink and gouache spreads capture every detail, right down to labels hand-painted on the soba boxes, in this wonderfully specific snapshot. An author’s note concludes. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Jackie Kaiser, Westwood Creative Artists. Illustrator’s agent: Hannah Mann, Writers House. (Aug.)