Transportation Story Time!

The first book that I read was Bug on a Bike by Chris Monroe. The entire book is a delightful rhyme where Bug convinces his friends to join him, but where are they going? Nobody knows! Lizard Mike, Randy the Toad, some ants on a log, Butterfly Andy, and the polka dot dog follow him cheerfully even though they have no idea where Bug is going. Along the way, more animals join them as well as an athletic pickle and a nickel. The children seemed very interested in the story, but I think it might have been a little too long. To make it more interesting, I don't read the long lists of who was following Bug, but the children and I counted how many animals/nickel/pickle were following Bug. When they finally arrive at their destination, they realize they are at Bug's birthday party! Bug has a beautiful and elaborate birthday party and the children and I had fun pointing out the many different items at Bug's birthday party: a moon bounce, a cake, cupcakes, cookies, hot dogs, and tacos to name just a few! At the end of the story, the satisfying conclusion focuses on Bug's reaction:
"And the bug on a bike? Well, he just had a ball. Seeing all his friends happy was the most fun of all."
The second book I read was Little Plane Learns to Write by Stephen Savage. It is a more interactive story and the children loved this story! Little Plane has to learn how to write his name in the sky by using arcs, dives, and loopity-loops. Little Plane successfully masters his dives and his arcs, but struggles with his loopity-loops. They make him dizzy. Eventually he masters his loopity-loops and can write successfully in the sky. The children and I spelled out and said the words cloud, rainbow, and moon which Little Plane had written in the sky. We also identified the colors in the rainbow.
The last book I read was Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems. I don't think that this classic needs an explanation, but if you are unfamiliar with the story the bus driver leaves his bus and tells the readers, "Don't let the pigeon drive the bus!" Then after the bus driver leaves, the pigeon arrives and tries to get the readers to let him drive the bus. The answer is always a resounding "No!" and the children love to keep saying "No!" to the pigeon's requests to drive the bus. However, one little girl was convinced and did say "Yes!" at the end of the story.
My alternate book that I didn't read was The Bus Is For Us! by Michael Rosen. In a catchy rhyme, the author suggests different forms of transportation: riding a bike, taking the car, taking the train, traveling in a little boat and in a big ship, but always concludes: "But the best is the bus. The bus is for us."