THE HOPPITY WHEELS ON THE BUS

Mills and Whitehouse return with another holiday-themed bus stop ditty.

Festooned with daisies, an orange-and-yellow-striped bus with bee wings attached to its top and a license plate that reads “HOP2IT” pulls up to the corner on a rainy spring day. Who is the driver? A dapper bunny, of course. Mills’ text breaks into a familiar tune: “One hoppity bus goes SPLISH and SPLASH, / SPLISH and SPLASH, SPLISH and SPLASH… / All through the rain.” After picking up three young human passengers (two are dark-skinned; one is pale-skinned), the vehicle rolls onward to the farm for a springtime festival. Ducks are quacking, dogs are digging, and hens are pecking. Every action is very spring-themed, but one obvious Easter reference sneaks in: “Seven spotted eggs play HIDE and SEEK, / HIDE and SEEK, HIDE and SEEK.” The cadence is easy to follow; those reading this aloud will need very little practice. Whitehouse keeps the scenes bouncing along with bright colors, energetic puddle splashes, and sparkly magic puffs as the rain stops and the bus flies off into the sunset toward a rainbow. Storytime friends will undoubtedly be bouncing and singing along.

A springy, hoppy, rollicking good time.