{"id":43594,"date":"2025-05-30T10:43:32","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T14:43:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redeemedreader.com\/?p=43594"},"modified":"2025-06-12T15:58:07","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T19:58:07","slug":"riding-the-rails-big-boy-4014-and-ticket-to-ride","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redeemedreader.com\/riding-the-rails-big-boy-4014-and-ticket-to-ride\/","title":{"rendered":"Riding the Rails: Big Boy 4014 and Ticket to Ride"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Big Boy 4014 and the Steam Train charts the restoration of a legendary locomotive.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big Boy 4014 and the Steam Train<\/em> by Marsha Diane Arnold, illustrated by Adam Gustavson. Sleeping Bear Press, 2025, 40 pages.<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Reading Level<\/strong>: Picture Book<\/a>, ages 4-8<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recommended for<\/strong>: ages 6-12<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were the largest steam locomotives ever built. In the years after World War II, most of the 25 were scrapped and the remainder served as centerpieces for railroad museums. Visitors would marvel about the size and wonder what a \u201cBig Boy\u201d would look and sound like if it could take to the tracks again. But that wasn\u2019t likely . . . until a handful of experts, a real \u201cSteam Team,\u201d gave #4014 a close look. It would take years and cost a fortune, but they believed one legendary Big Boy could be refurbished. Were they right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf steam locomotives could dream, Big Boy would be chugging up the Wasatch Mountains at top speed, feeling the warm of the coal in her firebox, as powerful as 7,000 horses.\u201d That dream came true, and since 2019 thousands of spectators have seen, heard, and felt that huge hunk of steel blaze by their towns and crossroads. The lavish double-page spreads communicate a sense of the locomotive\u2019s size, especially in comparison with the humans who put her on the rails again. Young railfans should also get a sense of the time and expertise that went into the restoration, giving Americans a whiff of the glory days of steam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bottom Line<\/strong>: Impressive, informative, and irresistible to any train enthusiast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ticket to Ride spins off the popular board game to form a new adventure\/mystery series<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ticket to Ride: \u00a0An Unexpected Journey<\/em> (Vol. 1) by Adrienne Kress, illustrated by David Miles. Andrews McMeel, 2025, 208 pages.<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Reading Level<\/strong>: Middle Grades<\/a>, ages 8-10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recommended for<\/strong>: ages 8-12<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teddy may be the world\u2019s greatest railfan, and he\u2019s just won the world\u2019s greatest railfan prize: a ticket to ride the inaugural run of the Excelsior Express, a passenger locomotive featuring the very latest in rail technology while sounding and looking like a 1920s 4-8-4. It\u2019ll be a long ride from Toronto to Los Angeles, but he\u2019s totally up for it, especially with the model caboose he always carries with him like a good-luck charm. The ride is off to an even better start when he finds a friend\u2014Olivia is on board for the whole journey with her rich, snobby parents. And she\u2019s a willing audience for Teddy\u2019s train lore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the Excelsior Express is rerouted to Pittsburg, it\u2019s nothing out of the ordinary. But when it\u2019s rerouted again Teddy has to wonder what\u2019s going on. Especially when his lucky caboose goes missing. What\u2019s going on?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The writing style is conversational and perhaps a little too talky, but the action will keep readers engaged and train lovers will pick up lots of interesting information. One small gripe is that most of the train crew, including conductor and engineer, are female. This is an irritating trend in many children\u2019s books to even the score on gender roles, even though very few women have these occupations in the real world. But it\u2019s just a story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bottom Line: An entertaining excursion into train lore and mystery, with most of the journey still ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also at Redeemed Reader:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n