ESS-CAR-GO by Ruth Amanda – Picture Books, Children’s Animal Stories, Snails

With their park damp from the rain, seven snails line up for their next thrilling race in Ruth Amanda’s Ess-Car-Go!

Frogs, bugs, birds, and even a curious cat come to cheer on the famous snail racers, from the stylish Sterling to the easily-distracted Sherlock. And as each one runs into their own kind of trouble; this trophy could go to anybody!

All the racers are easy to root for, with their mishaps fitting the natural oblivious image of snails.

Written in an energetic two-piece rhyming scheme, this story builds excitement all the way to the end.

Each snail is introduced with a cute, memorable design and a few accompanying rhymes to show their prowess and personality, getting readers as engaged in the race as all the critters in the park. Their distinctive colors keep the race clear, while helping to show there are many kinds of snails in the world—and sometimes even in just one stretch of grass.

The rhymes cleverly fit in some vocabulary words like “hydroplane”, and the back of the book even includes a list of fascinating snail facts, teaching kids and adults alike more about these strange garden creatures.

Whimsical watercolor illustrations absolutely fill Ess-Car-Go! with detail.

There’s always more to draw the eye across the page, from colorful plants to the menagerie of adorable critters—each with their own kind of visual charm.

Along with that dedication to detail, the illustrations play with funny animal visual gags. They indulge in the wonderful silliness of a frog doctor, birds and insects trying to help their favorite racer, and of course the shell-spraining speeds that these snails achieve—all while maintaining a real sense of suspense as the finish line approaches.