Back-to-School Bus: Pete the Cat: The Wheels on the Bus created by James Dean

THE WHEELS ON THE BUS GO ROUND AND ROUND....

Every preschooler who hasn't been raised in a cave knows the nursery song "The Wheels on the Bus,"  a ballad that describes what happens when kids get on that big yellow bus and venture forth into the world.

This new version of the old song has all the good stuff of the generic version--meter, rhyme scheme, and most of the text--but this bus has an additional attraction--Pete the Cat is in the driver's seat.

The much loved cartoon character is the one who sets this nursery song rolling. He starts the wheels going 'round early in the morning; he makes the doors open and shut with a whoosh,  the wipers to swish back and forth, and the horn go "beep beep beep."

But in James Dean's latest, Pete the Cat: The Wheels on the Bus HarperCollins, 2013), the passengers get a part as well: the little cats being transported add their own words to the venerable song:

THE KITTIES ON THE BUS SAY, "SIT WITH US! SIT WITH US!"

And even the lone dog  on the bus gets to sing "Woof, Woof, WOOF! " until Pete the Driver becomes Pete the Singing Cat once more.  Pulling out his red guitar, Pete lets the dog drive while he serenades the youngsters and sings his own lyrics!

THE CAT ON THE BUS SHOUTS "LET'S ROCK OUT! ALL DAY LONG!"

Pete the Cat is a natural to deliver the old song in his own rocking style, and as an introduction to the structure of this tune, this version is perfect for young Pete fans, especially those with the pre-school panics.