McToad Mows Tiny Island

Upon opening the book, readers are greeted by the scene of the gritty McToad walking towards a delightfully delapidated ramshackle shed. A bright green, dandelion-strewn field in the foreground and a monochromatic yet highly detailed yellow background round out the tableau featuring the simple pronoucement that “McToad likes Thursdays.” As the book develops, McToad’s enviable business empire emerges—he has prime branding on every mode of transportation (each unique!)—and we discover that he seems to have vertically integrated across the entire process, much like the business barons of old. What is perhaps most admirable about McToad is not how hard he works, but the joy he finds in working and doing it well, shown as he sips his lemonade and oils his lawn mower halfway through the job. The different font for each transportation mechanism, while difficult for new readers to decipher on their own, is punchy and elevates this deceptively simple story. The witty, ironic tale develops wonderfully and doesn’t disappoint as the book achieves its climax: the juxtaposition of the tremendous effort required to reach Tiny Island with just how tiny Tiny Island is. Those entranced by the way things work will note this title pulls all the right levers, providing plenty of engineering phenomena to marvel at, and lovers of detail will delight in the effort given to providing personality and authenticity to every page: an origami Yoda and cheat sheet of mowing patterns adorn McToad’s desk, rust streaks from every bolt on the ship, little debris and grass clippings fly in all directions at the appropriate times and endpapers tell part of the story themselves. Cleverly conceived and perfectly executed, this is one graphic designers, transportation gurus, lovers of process . . . and actually everyone else . . . will adore.