Creature ABC

Zuckerman, Andrew. 2009. Creature ABC. Chronicle Books.

Wow. Wow. Wow. This may just be my favorite alphabet book ever. It's so clever. It's so fun. It's one of those books with again-again appeal. What makes this one so great? The photographs of the animals? Yes. Mostly. But sometimes it's more than that. It's how the animals are presented. It's the way they're presented. It's the style and charisma of the photographs that makes this one wow-worthy. It's what makes this one equally appealing to adults. How many alphabet books have the power to engage adults?

How does this one work? Well, there's a two page spread featuring the letter itself--upper and lower case. This page also features a sneak-peek of the animal. (I love what he did with A, by the way!) And then there's another two page spread naming an animal (or in some cases many animals) that represents that letter. (As you might have guessed, Ee is for Elephant.) The book also features a glossary of facts for each animal represented in the book.

© Becky Laney of Young Readers