Publication
Amsterdam Querido 2010
ISBN
9789045110950
Language
Collections
Description
Pluck has a little red tow truck. He drives it all over town looking for a place to live. Then Dolly the pigeon tells him that the tower of the Pill Building is empty. In the Pill Building, Pluck meets Mr. Penn and Zaza the cockroach. Pluck makes lots more friends and solves all kinds of problems. But the biggest problem is Dove Grove. It used to be a garden with tall trees, but it has been neglected and gone wild. Grown-ups never go there, but the kids from the Pill Building love playing there. But now the Park Superintendent has decided to chop down the trees to make a paved square. Pluck and his friends try to save Dove Grove. But first he has to rescue Longmount from the canal.
Genres
User reviews
LibraryThing member khaddox
This book was provided to me as a digital review copy by the publisher, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
Tow-Truck Pluck was originally published as a weekly serial in a Dutch magazine in the late 60s, and was published as a book in 1971. It is still known as one of the most popular
Tow-Truck Pluck was originally published as a weekly serial in a Dutch magazine in the late 60s, and was published as a book in 1971. It is still known as one of the most popular
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Dutch children’s books ever, and I can see why. This is a wacky little book, and it took me a minute to get into the flow of the story, but once I did, I was invested. You have Pluck, who, by all accounts, is a young boy who lives on his own and drives a tow truck. There are other child characters, but they all have traditional child roles, with parents and childlike responsibilities and actions. I don’t know how to explain the character dynamics of this book, except to say that Pluck will do anything for a person or animal in need, and because of that, his friends will do anything for him. Animals can talk, have wooden legs, be limousine long, and captain ferries. Problems are resolved with solutions that are fantastical and way out of the box. The creativity is mind-boggling. Pluck is unkind once, but he tries to make things right. I would recommend this book to kids who appreciate whimsy and enjoy reading stories that are set in a less technologically advanced time. Show Less
LibraryThing member Carlathelibrarian
Tow-Truck Pluck is the story of a small boy with now parents, family or history. He has no home so when he finds a room in the tower of the Pitt building, he moves in. Each chapter is a story in itself. Pluck meets many of the residents of the Pitt building, some kind, some not so kind, some
Each adventure can be read as a bedtime story or it can be read as a book with chapters in one continuous story. Pluck is a delightful boy who manages to be of help to all his neighbors, be they human or animal, and slowly find his place in society. His adventures on fun with a message in each such as helping others etc. The illustrations are delightful. They are colourful with a lot of emotions emitted from the characters. This book was translated from Dutch but it is easy to read and could become a family favourite. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via netgalley.
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strange but all interesting. Along with the people he meets, he also meets and helps animals such as ZaZa the cockroach, Dizzy the squirrel and Longmount the horse. Pluck is always willing to help his neighbours and they all love him except for Mrs. Brightner, the lady with the spraycan who is a clean freak. She does not allow her daughter, Aggie, to go outside because she will get dirty. There are other children in the building that Pluck meets and befriends as well as his pigeon friend Dolly. Each adventure can be read as a bedtime story or it can be read as a book with chapters in one continuous story. Pluck is a delightful boy who manages to be of help to all his neighbors, be they human or animal, and slowly find his place in society. His adventures on fun with a message in each such as helping others etc. The illustrations are delightful. They are colourful with a lot of emotions emitted from the characters. This book was translated from Dutch but it is easy to read and could become a family favourite. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via netgalley.
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Awards
Gouden Griffel (Zilveren — 1972)
Original publication date
1971