Night Train, Night Train

In chalky grayscale art with occasional splashes of color, a steam train from the 1930s and ’40s (identified by Minor as a Dreyfuss Hudson locomotive) rolls along through the night while a boy with a teddy bear watches from the train windows. Burleigh describes the sights, writing in a gentle rhythm that mimics the locomotive’s soothing chug: “A barn. A house/ against the sky./ Big blue window/ like an eye.” Illustrations show a bird’s-eye perspective of the train (two Canada geese fly far above) as well as views of the train emerging from a tunnel, passing stations, and riding over bridges. Finally, the boy and bear peer out the window onto a hazy, dawn-lit cityscape. Wendell’s evocative scenes capture the nostalgia of train travel and the thrill of a nighttime journey. Ages 2–5. [em](Oct.) [/em]