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Not Just the Driver!

Illustrated by Robert Neubecker
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About The Book

Come along for the ride and meet the teams behind the machines that get us to our destinations in this “spirited…engaging” (The Horn Book, starred review) rhyming picture book celebrating transportation teamwork and featuring vibrant art by award-winning illustrator Robert Neubecker!

Who makes buses rev and go, through detours, gridlock, storms, and snow? Who sends riders—CLICK, CLICK, CLACK—down the proper railroad track?

It’s not just drivers and pilots and conductors! It’s also mechanics and maintenance workers, loaders and air traffic controllers, ticket agents and dispatchers. Young readers will meet the people who work behind the scenes to keep us and our vehicles moving and explore a whole slew of fun—and essential—transportation professions!

About The Author

Photo by Kym Fajardo
Sara Holly Ackerman

Sara Holly Ackerman is an early childhood educator and children’s book author based in Brooklyn, New York. She is the author of the picture book Not Just the Driver!, illustrated by Robert Neubecker, and Woods & Words, illustrated by Naoko Stoop. Visit her at SaraHollyAckerman.com.

About The Illustrator

Photograph © John Carlysle
Robert Neubecker

Robert Neubecker is the award-winning author and illustrator of Linus the Vegetarian T. Rex and the Wow! series. He also illustrated Not Just the Driver! by Sara Holly Ackerman, Shiver Me Timbers! by Douglas Florian, Sophie Peterman Tells the Truth! by Sarah Weeks, I Got Two Dogs by John Lithgow, and Monsters on Machines by Deb Lund. A graduate of Parsons School of Design, Robert also illustrates for The New York Times and Slate magazine. He and his family live in Salt Lake City, Utah. Visit Robert at Neubecker.com.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Beach Lane Books (April 9, 2024)
  • Length: 32 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781665936385
  • Ages: 4 - 8

Raves and Reviews

This charming book is an excellent addition to any library, encouraging young readers to appreciate the collective effort that keeps the world moving.

– School Library Journal, 10/18/24

"This one stands out in its salutary commitment to shining a spotlight on support teams. A warmly inclusive addition to the things-that-go genre."

– Kirkus Reviews, 2/15/24

"Readers don’t have to be vehicle aficionados to appreciate these pages: by spotlighting a behind-the-scenes workforce, Ackerman (The Gabi That Girma Wore) and Neubecker (Just Like Rube Goldberg) expand their audiences’ apertures in terms of both awareness and appreciation."

– Publishers Weekly, 1/22/24

"This distinctive transportation book with its chirpy, rhyming text appeals to a young vehicle-loving audience while capturing the complicated and often overlooked aspects involved in keeping systems moving."

– Horn Book, STARRED REVIEW, March/April 2024 Issue

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More books from this illustrator: Robert Neubecker