cover image Not Enough Beds!: A Christmas Alphabet Book

Not Enough Beds!: A Christmas Alphabet Book

Lisa Bullard. Carolrhoda Books, $15.95 (32pp) ISBN 978-1-57505-356-1

A somewhat silly abecedary from a pair of newcomers features the alphabetically ordered members of a very extended family. When all 26 arrive for the holidays, Zachary recounts, in rhyme, where everyone sleeps: ""Mistletoe beckons to shy Uncle Ed,/ while big Uncle Fritz makes a snow-angel bed."" The pictures strive for whimsy with details like great-grandma Ursula's gaily wrapped cane and the mice who frolic at the edges of every scene, but the draftsmanship is weak. Ages 5-8. (Sept.)