Maryann Cocca-Leffler uses natural language to describe the sights: "The butcher shop floor was covered with sawdust. We sat on the step stool and played with the cat while Mom and Alberto talked in Italian." And no young reader can hold in a giggle as "ladies in their underwear crowded around the tiny mirror trying on their clothes."

The author/illustrator grew up near Boston, and it's obvious from her painting of the row houses, complete with kickball-playing children. The food in the bakery is deliciously enticing. The story ends as it began, with friendly bus driver Bill taking his passengers home after a busy day.