{"product_id":"wild-blue-taming-a-bigkid-bike-isbn-9781536215670","title":"Wild Blue: Taming a Big-Kid Bike","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn a charming take on a milestone moment, a young girl summons a cowpoke’s courage to tame her intimidating new bicycle.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKayla loves riding her pink pony, a three-wheeled bike, up and down the street, day after day. But then Daddy announces that it’s time for a big-kid bike, one with just two wheels. At the store, Kayla selects her mount, but when she tries to ride it, she is thrown—again and again. Can she tame this intimidating set of wheels? Or is the new blue bike just too wild? Tender and relatable, \u003ci\u003eWild Blue\u003c\/i\u003e captures the emotions of moving up in the world through an endearing character with a boundless imagination. Despite falls, bumps, and bruises, Kayla takes her time learning the ropes, until she finally has the confidence to let go of her fear, climb back on, and ride again. Her story will delight and reassure readers transitioning from trikes or training wheels and inspire them to manage setbacks with patience and creativity.Slater does an \u003cb\u003eexcellent \u003c\/b\u003ejob inhabiting that space between imagination and real life that allows two things to be true: Wild Blue can be simultaneously a horse and a bicycle. Hughes’s soft acrylic-ink illustrations capture that space as well: we sometimes see Kayla in a cowboy hat in the company of a large horse, and at other times in a bicycle helmet with her bike. Readers will appreciate Kayla’s commitment to her imaginative life, along with Slater’s twist on the familiar learning-to-ride-a-bike story.\u003cbr\u003e—The Horn Book\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA \u003cb\u003equiet \u003c\/b\u003estory, this may help young readers who are similarly transitioning their two-wheeled steeds or prepare them for the experience of doing so. . . \u003cb\u003eA new tale with a classic feel\u003c\/b\u003e that will buoy many young riders.\u003cbr\u003e—Kirkus Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThrough the extended metaphor of taming a wild stallion, an imaginative child describes learning to ride a new bike in this \u003cb\u003ewarmly encouraging story\u003c\/b\u003e. . . aptly captures the thrilling triumph of learning to ride.\u003cbr\u003e—Publishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKayla’s “pink pony” (a bike with training wheels) is too small for her now, and it’s time to put it “out to pasture” and find a more suitable steed. Kayla “wrangles” a ride she dubs Wild Blue at the bike shop, but the bike is a huge adjustment from her old one. . . \u003cb\u003eViewers taking on a daunting new skill may relate to and benefit from Kayla’s imaginative methods\u003c\/b\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis picture book, in which a girl trades in her training wheels for a daunting two-wheeler, is a subtle but effective demonstration of how exposure therapy can conquer fear. . . . The acrylic-ink illustrations and \u003cb\u003esunset hues\u003c\/b\u003e brilliantly enhance the Old West metaphor, as the landscape shifts incrementally from urban to rural. . . a great example of step-by-step learning.\u003cbr\u003e—Booklist\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn this understanding picture book by Dashka Slater, we meet a young girl who imagines that her low-slung kiddie bike is a pink pony. . . . There’s a beguiling fluidity in the illustrations (see below) that allows us to see the child’s surroundings both as they are and as her fancy perceives them. . . . Readers ages 3-6 who are nervous about taming their own big-kid bikes will find a heroine to cheer in this \u003cb\u003eheartening and humorous\u003c\/b\u003e tale.\u003cbr\u003e—The Wall Street Journal\u003cb\u003eDashka Slater\u003c\/b\u003e is an award-winning journalist who writes for such publications as the\u003ci\u003e New York Times Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eMother Jones. \u003c\/i\u003eThe author of many books of fiction and nonfiction for children and adults, she lives in Oakland, California.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLaura Hughes\u003c\/b\u003e is the award-winning illustrator of \u003ci\u003eGood Night Tiger\u003c\/i\u003e by Timothy Knapman and many other books for children. Her work is also featured on greeting cards, wrapping paper, and stationery. She lives in Hastings, England.","brand":"Candlewick","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46301325230309,"sku":"NP9781536215670","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781536215670.jpg?v=1767744309","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/wild-blue-taming-a-bigkid-bike-isbn-9781536215670","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}