For preschoolers learning about other people groups and the alphabet, Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions by Margaret Musgrove is the perfect picture book marrying the two. Musgrove works her way through the alphabet, telling a bit about a different African tribe for each letter. The tribal illustrations by Leo and Diane Dillon are as interesting... Continue Reading →
Albert’s Alphabet
Albert the duck is the carpenter at Pleasant Valley School. One day he comes to work and finds a note from the principal, asking him to build an alphabet for the children. Albert has tools and a box of wood, but he soon finds it's not enough to get through the entire alphabet. He comes... Continue Reading →
The Z was Zapped
Chris Van Allsburg, a talented artist and author, brings his unique eye to the younger crowd in his alphabet book The Z was Zapped. Each letter takes the stage, and something happens to it. The E slowly evaporates. The M begins to melt. The O is overgrown. And you can guess what happens to the... Continue Reading →
Have You Ever Seen…
It's difficult to find an alphabet book that stands out from the shelves crowded with such books. Each time I find one, I'm thrilled. I remember the tedium of reading the same book over and over to a toddler, so to find a book we both enjoyed reading over and over was quite the treasure.... Continue Reading →
My Little House books
When I first came across the My First Little House Books series, I was disgusted. Is there no end to repackaging, marketing and otherwise destroying my favorite books? But curiosity overcame my disgust and I picked up a variety of them and brought them home to read and evaluate. I was pleasantly surprised at... Continue Reading →
LMNO peas
In a crowded market of alphabet books, Keith Baker's LMNO peas stands out. His adventurous peas cavort through the alphabet. They participate in all sorts of fun activities, like building, climbing, dancing, farming, quilting and reading. Peas fill every page, along with colorful and textured alphabet letters, which dwarf the peas on each page. The... Continue Reading →
the hidden alphabet
Parents and children alike will enjoy the hidden alphabet by Laura Vaccaro Seeger. Seeger created a beautiful lift-the-flap book with capital letters. Each flap has a window with a picture illustrating the letter. Then, the reader lifts the flap to reveal: the hidden letter of the alphabet. Seeger elegant paintings for each letter really capture... Continue Reading →
Alligators All Around
You can find alphabet books galore at your local library or bookstore. Every popular cartoon character has one, every cultural icon for the under-five crowd. But hidden behind or between those books are gems worth reading again and again. Alligators All Around by Maurice Sendak is one of those jewels. Sendak works his way through... Continue Reading →
I Stink!
Alphabet and counting books fill the shelves of libraries. Some of them are cute and some are beautiful. Then there is I Stink! I Stink! by Kate and Jim McMullan is the perfect alphabet book for boys, and girls who love gross things. I Stink! follows the journey of a garbage truck through the dark... Continue Reading →
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
When my children were little, I read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, Jr and John Archambault so many times I could say the entire book by heart. And honestly, I was OK with that. Many a children's book grows old after reading it for the one-hundred-and-fiftieth time, but not this one. I read... Continue Reading →
Cultivating Readers 