Garage Song

by Sarah Elizabeth Wilson, Bernie Karlin (Illustrator)

The hustle and bustle of busy servicemen hard at work on automobiles fills the service station, in a rhythmic chant that captures the noises of the garage

30 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

I was born in Syracuse, NY, but most of my early growing up was in Maine and Massachusetts. My mother was an artist and librarian. My father was a Naval engineer who also worked in electronics and liked to put together small inventions, ship models and toys. Both of my parents had a wonderful sense of humor and fun, which made for a lot of happy memories. There were always stories to enjoy around the dinner table, and we sang when we drove anywhere.

We moved a lot with the Navy. I went to 12 different elementary schools and four high schools, which didn't seem all that unusual at the time. Every spring and fall, I'm still ready to go somewhere and meet new people, although I've lived in Northern California for a long time now. My husband is an architect, and we have two grown children, a son who lives nearby and a daughter who has special needs and lives with us. No dogs or cats at the moment, but we live on a hill and share our back yard with deer, raccoons, possums, skunks and squirrels.

I've been writing and drawing for as long as I can remember - folding, stapling and gluing small books together. I have a BA degree from Ohio University, which let me have a double major in both English and art, and also a Diploma in Spanish Studies from the University of Madrid. When I have time, I paint. I also doodle a lot and fill up small notebooks with word-play and ideas. I use Micron pens and keep two daily journals, one in pictures (cartoons, really), and one in writing. This has been fun.

I've written and/or illustrated over 30 books for children; two non-fiction books for adults, two newspaper comic panels, a children's newsletter, "The Letter Bear," and assorted poetry. I've also worked as a freelance artist and taught workshops. On a nine-to-five schedule, I've been both a medical social worker and a children's art teacher.

Books are a joy, and I feel fortunate to be doing the same kind of happy folding. stapling. glueing and drawing which I loved at the age of five. I'm grateful for The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, for all of the creative people around me, and for my enthusiastic fifth grade art teacher who thought I could be published some day, "...If you'll just keep working and working and working at it!".

Reviews

[Michael Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

At my advanced age, I don’t often review children’s picture books, but this one deserves to be an exception. My three-year-old grandson found it at the library and, at his insistence, I read it to him until he had it nearly memorized. It’s about a boy on a bicycle who spends most of a day at an old-fashioned sort of gas station and auto-repair garage, the sort of place where they’ll pump your gas, fix your flat, and give you directions. The three-man crew shows up early and opens for business, with a fourth guy coming in later and staying late. And then the customers begin to arrive, each with their own problems. Then there’s a lunch break, with the boy and the garage guys lounging out back by the soft drink machine. Then the day proceeds until sundown, when the boy peddles home again, leaving the last crew member alone and with his feet up in the lighted office.

That’s the “plot,” with a short rhyming text on each page to describe what’s going on. But the real delight is Karlin’s heavily detailed artwork of drivers in need (and sometimes in argument), dented cars, tow trucks, dogs in pickup beds, families in RVs, and all the rest of a street corner’s daily panorama. My grandson takes an hour to get through this book now, telling me exactly what all is going on and who’s doing what. Of course, he’s already fascinated by cars and trucks (and every other sort of vehicle, from fire engines to zambonis), but this book should be a winner for most small children. Highly recommended.