ABC T-Rex - Hardcover

Most, Bernard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0152020071 ISBN 13: 9780152020071

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers, 2000

Synopsis

A young T-Rex loves his ABCs so much that he wants to eat them up, and when he takes a few bites he finds that each letter has something unique about it: C is chewy, D is delicious, K tastes great with ketchup, etc.

About this title

About the Author

Bernard Most has written and illustrated many popular children's books about dinosaurs. He lives in New York.

Reviews

PreSchool-Grade 3-Using his characteristic thick-lined cartoons, Most incorporates the ever-popular dinosaur motif into this concept book in which an alphabet-loving T-Rex eats each letter in turn. Using mostly adjectives instead of nouns, the author describes the qualities of each letter as T-Rex devours it: "I was irresistible, "J was juicy." The accompanying illustrations highlight the ravenous reptile as he feasts, surrounded by foods and objects that begin with the featured letter. While readers will enjoy spotting these items, some of the adjectives will be challenging for young children, such as "luscious" and "quenching." Additionally, the unnamed objects are sometimes hard to identify, such as "quart jars" for the letter Q. The author does provide an appendix of "Some extra things to look for," arranged alphabetically, which will help children to make the connection between letter and word when the text does not. Purchase for fans of Most's work or of Jean Marzollo's "I Spy" titles (Scholastic) more than for the alphabet concept.
Holly Belli, Bergen County Cooperative Library System, West Caldwell, NJ
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Most's (A Pair of Protoceratops, 1998, etc.) wonderful, color-drenched artwork sets off this edible tour of the alphabet. The principal is a young T-rex who loves the alphabet so much he decides to eat it. Each letter he scarfs down evokes a word beginning with that letter: ``K tasted great with ketchup. L was luscious. M was a mouthful.'' The dinosaur keeps on munching until he gets a bellyache and drops off into the land of zzzzz's. As with all of Most's dinosaurs, this one is a winning character, caught in the thick black outlining of Most's artwork, and situated in a luxurious background landscape of foodstuffs and color. In addition to the words in the text, readers will be able to decipher a number of other items in the pictures that match the letter under discussion, such as the watermelons, wheelbarrow, whipped cream, waffles, walruses, and the wagon that illustrate ``W was wonderful.'' A list of those extra things to look for appears at the end of the book. (Picture book. 5-7) -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

A young dinosaur, living a comfortably suburban lifestyle, eats his way through the alphabet in this genial ABC picture book. Each page (except for the double-page spread for "W"), features a new letter and a new setting for the hero, who in one scene wears footed pajamas and a bib, but in another operates a barbecue grill on his own. Oh well, who can say what's age-appropriate for the young of an extinct species? In any case, young humans will enjoy little T-rex's enormous gusto, plowing through a variety of foods, although "U upset his tummy" and slows him down for the denouement. On a typical page, "F was feast" finds him forking down French fries, fried chicken, and the letter "F" itself, while fruit salad, fish, fried chicken, and fudge wait to be devoured. Heavy black lines define the cartoonlike drawings, brightened with a colorful palette emphasizing shades of green, purple, and orange. Fun for alphabetically inclined preschoolers. Carolyn Phelan

Edition details

• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0152020071
• ISBN 13: 9780152020071
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32