Book Descriptions
for Alphabetter by Dan Bar-el and Graham Ross
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
“Alberto had an alligator, but he didn’t have a bathing suit. Benoît had a bathing suit, but he didn’t have a clarinet. Cara had a clarinet, but she didn’t have . . . ” Twenty-six children with names that start from A to Z each have something he or she doesn’t need, while their alphabetical neighbor is in possession of just the thing they want in Dan Bar-el’s absurd alphabet book that builds to a delightful climax. Graham Ross’s illustrations show twenty-six diverse children in comical scenarios that provide visual context for the objects they possess, and the ones they desire. Ross has also hidden a letter of the alphabet within each illustration (i.e., there is an “a” hidden on the “Alberto” page, a “b” on the “Benoît” page, and so on). (Ages 3–6)
CCBC Choices 2007 . © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2007. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
Did you ever try to use an egg in place of a football? Or dress up a live quail in doll's clothes when you didn't have a doll? Or strap rag-dolls onto your feet in place of slippers? In Alphabetter,twenty-six boys and girls find themselves in twenty-six different predicaments when the alphabet refuses to cooperate with them. In the end, the solution turns out to be right on the next page, if only they can find it...
Did you find all the letters hidden in the pictures in Alphabetter? Some of them are very hard to find! These are the ones that we know about. Maybe you found others as well. Happy searching!
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.