By Trolley Past Thimbledon Bridge

This picture book takes children of all ages on a trolley-ride dream adventure
 
Featuring the illustrations of Caldecott Honoree Marvin Bileck, this book creates a sense of magic and wonder in the unfettered imagination of the child. As sleep starts, children are invited on board a trolley for a marvelous, nonsensical journey through the scenes that mirror all of life’s diverse elements, revealing animals, far-off places, a circus, games, toys, wind, rain, words, and wordplay. A poem accompanies the whimsical illustrations, perfectly capturing the sense of awe and excitement of childhood.

"This is the work of two masters, who will take children on an exciting passage through time and illusion with their careful blending of words and pictures." —Jan Spivey Gilchrist, Coretta Scott King Award winning author and illustrator

"What a joy to read and reread! Truly a treasure! Bileck and Bryan will bewitch generations of readers." —Leslie Tryon, author and illustrator

"This trolley ride took me back to my own childhood, complete with the sound memory of the clank of change in the fare box. Now, the special stop I’d like to make is when the trolley passes Timbuctu." —Henrietta Mays Smith, professor emerita, University of South Florida, Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award Winner

"With echoes of Lear and Stevenson, this journey into the land of dreams pairs a detailed Old World setting with a pulsing four-beat rhythm to pull readers into its magical realm . . . . Masterful wordplay, alliteration, imagery, and rhyme contribute to this 29-stanza poem, printed in its entirety at the opening and then woven throughout the densely populated pages in a hand-printed text . . . . Bileck and Bryan capture the stuff of dreams in this mesmerizing and multifaceted pageant." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review 

"Lines of prose are scattered among the illustrations, which will dazzle the eyes and stimulate the imagination. By Trolley Past Thimbledon Bridge has literally been decades in the making, but this beautiful picture book has been completely worth the wait." —Holly Scudero, sanfranciscobookreview.com

Ashley Bryan is an author, artist, and teacher who was the first African American man to both write and illustrate a book for children. His work has earned widespread recognition, including the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award and several Coretta Scott King awards and honors. He is the author of two volumes of collections of Black American spirituals, I’m Going to Sing and Walk Together Children. He lives in on Cranberry Island (Isleford), Maine. Marvin Bileck was an artist, an educator, and a designer and illustrator of children’s books, including Penny; Rain Makes Applesauce, which earned a Caldecott Honor; Sugarplum, and A Walker in the City.