Roma the road train's first road trip by Debbie Camps

Illus. by David Clare. Little Steps, 2019. ISBN: 9781925839524.
(Ages: 4-8) This is an Aussie book for Aussie kids who love road trains. Roma is a smiley green road train with four huge trailers and Norm is her driver. 'Today Norm is driving his brand new road train . . . from Darwin to Alice Springs' (this journey is also depicted in the front of the book on a map of Australia). They have a long way to drive and heavy and important freight on board. The story takes us through the journey step by step, from the safety check Norm performs and his farewell to his wife and young kids all the way through to getting a new load and going back the other way.
Lots of information about both trucks and the Northern Territory is crammed into the story (we learn trucks have loud air horns and that truck drivers talk to each other over UHF radio as well as that you can't swim in the water because of crocodiles) but it also tells a lovely story about the life of a truck driver. Lots of fun fact text bubbles about trucking and Australian wildlife are also scattered throughout the book ('Tourists and travellers dress the termite mounds in all sorts of interesting outfits along the highways in the Northern Territory!').
This is a perfect information story book for young ones who have truck driving parents or the many who are simply fascinated by these big machines and the vast distances they travel across Australia. Themes: Australian Road Trains and Drivers, Northern Territory.
Nicole Nelson