books by Lizann Flatt

From snowshoes to streetcars, steamboats to space shuttles, take a delightful trip through time to discover the history of transportation.

A Bit Behind the Book

Seems to me I have always been fascinated by travel. Maybe that's because under normal circumstances I cannot, and never have been able to, sleep in a car. Apparently not even as a baby. I took a school bus to school every day and at first it terrified me. As I got older it just got boring. Where I grew up, when we wanted to go to a real town it was a 20-minute drive away. Add to those facts the fact that my dad was always into trains and trolleys, so I saw a lot of those as I grew up (real ones and model ones!). I loved learning to drive a car. To expand my driving abilities I got partway through my ultralight pilot's license before other commitments took over.

I remember once in high school, a friend and I were entertaining her relatives from Denmark. They were absolutely floored that we would drive for 45 minutes to do something for a few hours. It seemed normal to us! And then after graduating from university I toured Europe by rail.  Today I live where I couldn't function without my car. If my kids want to go to a real town it's a 20-minute drive away. Sometimes I find myself wondering how different my life would be if I had to hitch up my horse and buggy....  

Selected Reviews
 
"Flatt's prose is evocative and this colourful cavalcade through time also has lots of eye appeal."
 — Susan Perren, The Globe & Mail

"Let's Go takes kids (boys!) on a trip through history... Written in a simple sing-song manner and accompanied by bright, fun illustrations, this book will please the younger set."
 — Leslie Garrett, Today's Parent

"A breezy picture book introduction to modes of North American transportation from foot power to space vehicle.... This is a fun selection for reading or browsing and a nice supplement to units on the history of transportation."
— Lynn K. Vanca, School Library Journal

"Excellently done. Any child that loves trucks and cars will be intrigued by this illustrated timeline and will love the trivia included at the end of the book."
 — Jelly Mom Children's Book Reviews

"Engaging, upbeat illustrations and a stirring current of action, alliteration and ever-changing gaits sweep us through the evolution of transportation from teh ice age to modern day, providing vivid glimpses of North American life and insight into the impact of transportation technology on the human experience."
 — Just One More Book

"Without overwhelming readers in detail, Let's Go gives a fantastic introduction to all of the different modes of transportation."
 — The Well Read Child

"Let's Go is an enticing history of transportation suitable for primary and junior students with cross-curriculum applications for literacy, social studies and science."
— Bonnie Beldan Thomson, Professionally Speaking

"Distilling thousands of years of transportation history into a picture book for a young audience is a tall order, but Flatt and Ritchie pull it off brilliantly."
 — Fiona Bayrock, Books and ’Rocks