Review: Whoo! Whoo! Goes the Train

We picked up Whoo! Whoo! Goes the Train at the library since we love trains at our house.  While the topic might be popular with toddlers, this story lacks continuity and imagination.  Even the illustrations were slightly annoying to me with the main character being a sad kitty cat boy.  I just can’t recommend this book for young readers. 

Spoiler Alert:

Allan is a young cat who seems obsessed with trains.  Several examples of his love of train are detailed including play acting like a train crossing signal and having a CD with train noises.  (CD with train noises?)  Suddenly, Allan and his family are at a train station.  Guess what’s the first thing Allan wants to see on the train? The bathroom!  (The bathroom???) Finally after a short little trip, Allan the cat cries when the train ride is over.  Suddenly Allan and his family are at Train Land!!  (Train Land???) Now, the story ends.  No conclusion.  Just, the end!

While I appreciate that little kids like trains, this story reads more like it was written by a child than a story with even basic story structure.  The ending of the book is simply unacceptable.  I can say, one positive about the book was the use of many different train sounds.  That being said, I will send this book back to the library (without another reread) for sure.  If you are looking for a train books check out these books instead: Chugga Chugga Choo Choo by Kevin Lewis, The Goodnight Train by June Sobel, Freight Train by Donald Crews, or even the countless Thomas or Chugginton books that kids seem to enjoy.