cover image The Wacky Wedding: A Book of Alphabet Antics

The Wacky Wedding: A Book of Alphabet Antics

Pamela Duncan Edwards. Hyperion Books for Children, $14.99 (32pp) ISBN 978-0-7868-0308-8

A queen ant and her winged groom head for the altar in this buggy--though not particularly wacky--alphabet. The nuptials take place on the verdant and damp forest floor, the bride and groom thronged by a peaceable kingdom of butterflies, bees, birds and a mole. Alliterative sentences convey the plot; for the letter L, ""a ladybug laughed. `They've loved each other since they were larvae.' "" The wedding is not without incident, for the bride falls into a puddle at the letter Q: "" `Quick!' squealed the quails. `Quiet down! Quit quivering and quaking and help the Queen.' "" Fortunately, the letter-V velvet ant effects a rescue, and at the end of the alphabet and the eventful day, ""Zebra swallowtails on their zithers strummed a lazy tune... as drowsily the ants zigzagged home."" The team behind Dinorella makes a lively game of the volume. Edwards shows how a key letter may appear at the start of or within a word; Cole hides the specified letter, and an object beginning with that letter, in each image. Unfortunately, there is no key to the visual puzzles, which sometimes prove obscure due to the complex details. Attendance at this event isn't mandatory, but a good time may be had. Ages 4-7. (June)