Tin Lizzie by Allan Drummond - review

Tin Lizzie by Allan Drummond - review
Allan Drummond has succeeded in making a book that simultaneously celebrates the invention of the Ford Model T - the Tin Lizzie - and addresses the environmental problems that are the result of our increased reliance on automobiles.

Quite a feat!

Grandpa restores a Tin Lizzie and takes his four grandkids, all of whom have inherited his mania for anything on wheels, out for a ride. Along the way, the kids notice the congestion and the pollution, and start asking questions: "Someday, won't there be just too many cars?" "What will happen if the world runs out of oil?" Grandpa checks out for a little nap, having created all these problems that his grandchildren will inherit (ha ha, just pokin' fun there), and the kids talk out some solutions: they reject ideas such as more roads and more fuel-efficient cars, and suggest carpooling, public transit, and bicycles.

The front endpapers show milestones in automobile history; the rear endpapers show problems caused by car culture and possible solutions.

Neatly done. And the sketchy pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations make me think of all kinds of fifties magazine and cookbook illustrations. I've seen Allan Drummond's stuff in The New Yorker. And I sure hope my niece Ali is taking his classes at SCAD!