All Aboard! A ride on the train is always exciting. There’s
always something new to see, even if you’ve been there
before. But some train rides are better than others . . . What if a
train took you somewhere entirely unexpected? What if the
doors opened in a strange new place? In this refreshing
wordless picture book, Lehman turns a routine trip on the local
train into a joyous and heroic expedition.
Readers will delight in following a young girl as she descends
with her parents into the subway and emerges in a magical
landscape. After saving a diminutive airplane and pilot, she
returns home to the city but is delighted when her small friends bring her a thank-you gift. From the
delicious green endpapers to the final spread, this picture book has a subtle yet thoughtful environmental
message that won’t be lost on small readers.
Born in Chicago, Barbara Lehman attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, where she earned a BFA in
communication design. A full-time illustrator, Barbara says, “Books and art have always held the
strongest attraction for me. I have always felt drawn to ‘commercial art’ because of its ability to reach
many people. I like the idea of being part of the media in a meaningful and thoughtful way, especially
with children as the audience.” She now lives in Philmont, New York. She received a Caldecott Honor
medal for The Red Book.
The illustrator Lehman has always been interested in trains; she once did illustration work for the New
York City Transit Authority, illustrating guides on subway safety, which were distributed free to
thousands of school kids. To prepare for the illustrations she did lots of drawing of people while riding
the trains, sketching cars and platforms in the Transit Museum (which is in a former Brooklyn subway
station).
“I really loved doing these jobs,” says Lehman. “I love subway systems. I’d hear from friends that they’d
spotted whole classes walking through stations holding the booklets with their teachers. While I no longer
live in a city, I still actually dream about the subway quite often. What is so compelling about subways?
I love how they make a big city interconnected, how it all usually manages to work more often then not
despite the complexity, and the variety possible in a ride.”
"Lehman’s spacious, boldly outlined pictures tell a deceptively simple story that demands repeated visits
as it seamlessly captures a child’s joyful wandering between reality and imagined play."—Booklist
"Once again, Lehman. . . demonstrates her extraordinary knack for storytelling sans words."—Horn Book
