In this riveting read, Nickle (The Ant Bully
) proves that mastering one's ABCs does not have to be routine, as he makes a game out of expanding kids' vocabularies. Each page is devoted to one letter of the alphabet and prompts readers to uncover and name all of the surrounding objects that begin with said letter. The opening instructions aim to engage readers and perhaps make them feel as if they have a competitive edge in what could be a daunting task ("If you find more things than we did, please contact our Chief Alphabet Expert," Nickle himself—an email address is listed). With a turn of the page, the game begins with a grouping of identifiable objects in a collage-like design. While some items are in plain sight, others require a more observant eye. (On the E
page, there's not just an eel
to note, but the electricity
he's producing.) The letter often dictates the visual composition, such as a checkerboard
pattern for C
and a dinosaur
that divides a dots
backdrop from a diamonds
foreground in D
. This title lets kids don their thinking caps without feeling like they are being schooled. Chances are, they'll be flipping back and forth to the last pages on which the answers are revealed. But no matter the final score, everyone's a winner with this book. Ages 3-8. (Sept.)
