Tap Tap Boom Boom

(Paperback)

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Description

In toe-tapping, jazz-chant verse. . . . Bluemles story unfolds on a scale just right for preschoolers, with plenty of hullabaloo. Publishers Weekly(starred review)

The clouds are gathering above a city street and soon tap, tap, boom, boom!As a thunderstorm rolls in, people of all stripes race to get away from the crackling rain and wind. With quirky wordplay and infectious rhymes, Elizabeth Bluemle crystallizes an unexpected moment of community, while G. Brian Karass warm illustrations show the smiles to be had when a storm brings strangers together as friends.

Reviews

'Tap Tap Boom Boom' offers a smaller, anecdotal slice of New York life... quotidian but magical, the kind of interruption in routine that might loom large in a small child's eyes and is rendered evocatively here. G. Brian Karas's illustrations, which combine drawings and photographs, capture the crazy yellow light of a summer storm while the onomatopoetic title, used as a refrain in the text, renders the sound of big, juicy raindrops splattering on concrete as thunder cracks overhead.
The New York Times Book Review

In toe-tapping, jazz-chant verse, author, bookseller, and PW blogger Bluemle writes about the way a sudden thunderstorm makes friends/ of strangers. ... Bluemles story unfolds on a scale just right for preschoolers, with plenty of hullaballoo, subtle attention to the senses, and an affirmation of the way misfortune can lead to small miracles.
Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Bluemle employs bouncy, fast-paced rhymes and rhythms with words that emphasize sound and movement. ... The text, appropriately varied in size and boldness to match the storms activity, moves across mostly double-paged spreads and intermingles with the illustrations. Karas ... sets gouache and pencil drawings within collages of photographs of New York City. ... The ethnically diverse characters are animated as they head for the subway stairs, and there are delightful details to elicit giggles from young readers. Cuddle up for a rainy-day adventure.
Kirkus Reviews

Children will enjoy following the various characters as they put up umbrellas, splash through puddles, and run for cover down the subway stairs... Karas colorful, detailed, and lively picturescreated using photographs, gouache, and pencilare the perfect vehicle for Bluemles succinct, catchy rhymes that energetically describe a sudden rainstorm in the city.
Booklist

Karass winsome, multicultural caricatures inhabit a neighborhood that appears lifelike due to his use of photographs for buildings and subway details. As children and adults dash between the showers and thunderbolts to the safety of the underground station, Bluemles taut, clever verse propels the plot: Feet wetter/Youd better/go down/underground,/where the water/cant getcha./You betcha. ... This upbeat rendition of a common experience will have universal appeal. Dont wait for a rainy day to share the fun.
School Library Journal

The sonorous language of Bluemles rhythmic text makes it a pleasure to read aloud... Karas illustrationsa mixture of photographs, gouache, and pencilare as expressive and detailed as always, and the combination of media expertly captures both the energy of a big city and the quietness of a pause in the commotion.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

The poetic rhythm of the language mimics the stages of the storm and the tempo of the citizens footsteps. Though minimal, the text is powerful, and works well with the illustrations to create positive feelings about the weather. Grey, brown, and black dominate throughout, surrounding the reader with the feel of a messy, urban thunderstorm; however, the overall connotation of the story is upbeat. This story begs to be read aloud and is sure to have young readers booming and tapping along.
Library Media Connection

Elizabeth Bluemle's simple, musical rhymes and G. Brian Karas's photo, gouache and pencil collages capture the way a thunderstorm in the city unites a community. ... A rainy day delight.
Shelf Awareness (starred review)

Illustrator G. Brian Karas places readers right in the center of the action. Combined with Bluemles immediate, first-person sentences, its as if were in danger of getting soaked ourselves. The collaged photos of city scenesalong with Karas gouache and pencil additionsmake for intriguing textures and add concreteness to this warm-hearted story of community. ... This is one storm readers will be pleased to participate in.
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