Woodland Litter Critters ABC - Hardcover

Patience H. C. Mason

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1892220105 ISBN 13: 9781892220103

Publisher: Patience Press, 2014

Synopsis

ABC Picture book. Patience Mason finds Litter Critters hiding in the woodlands wherever she goes. The Critters, made from acorns to pinecones to thistledown come to life on their way to watch the sunset at the shady river in their Woodland home. As these natural and impish figures gather to watch the sunset, young readers are introduced to the alphabet. The Litter Critters were made by Patience Mason, photographed in acton by Robert Mason. 8.5"x11", 32 pages, hardbound. Patience Press.

About this title

From the Author

For years, I have been making little critters out of sweetgum balls, acorns, pine cones, acorn caps, twigs and anything else I can find in the woods. I can't walk anywhere without seeing things that I can turn into critters. I spend a lot of time on each one and they seem to have expressions and personality. I decided to use the characters I create in a book. An ABC seemed an easy way to start. My husband, Bob, took the photographs of the critters. He did the layout of each page while I wrote the text. This book is a complete departure for me from my earlier writing on recovering from PTSD. It has been just plain fun. We have tried to be funny with names and creatures. I used upper case and lower case letters on each page, because most kids will be using lower case when they learn to read and write. It was fun inventing critters for some of the letters. On the last page kids can also trace the alphabet backwards from A to Z, something I have never seen in another book.

Review

"A host of strange and delightful creatures made from seeds, leaves and vines populates the pages of this first children's book by the Masons ... A book that will engage young readers with its unusual creatures and may inspire them to create their own." Kirkus Reviews

"...a distinctive children's ABC ... Woodland Litter Critters does not condone actual littering; instead, the title refers to whimsical sculptures of imaginary animals, crafted with loving care from acorns, twigs, pine cones, etc. collected from the forest floor... displayed in full-color photographs and poses... A unique and captivating work of art in more ways than one, Woodland Litter Critters is a wonderful ABC book for parents and children to share--and perhaps inspiration to create one's own critter art projects from ordinary woodland litter! Midwest Book Review 09 Sep. 2014

"Many ABC books are loud and chaotic... the litter critters ... have such charm and cleverness that you can't wait to turn the page to see which critter will represent the next letter!
From Andy Acorncap and the Bird babies to Zippy the Zygodactyl, each page contains an amazing litter critter to examine and a sweet or humorous bit of text to accompany. The critters alone are stunning in their detail and ingenuity. And the text is a nice accompaniment... ."  --Joy, The Book Children

"... a "wonder"-full book filled with delightful text and images that spread over the page playfully ignoring margins and scale to create a sense of a maker's kind of book... I often judge an ABC book by how it treats the letter X. And Patience does not disappoint from a wonder sense. On this page, we meet Xerxes the Xenos his one-eyed Xat. Later, in the end pages of the book, we learn that Xenos means "alien" in Greek. Imagine, later in a students reading, when they encounter the word, xenophobia, within a text and remember Xenos." Paul Hankins, Wonderopolis

"An unusual feature in Woodland Litter Critters ABC, aside from all the critters, is the ABC's are not only in upper case, as in every other ABC book, but also in lower case. Children can walk into their first day of school knowing both and be ahead of the class...the most imaginative and creative ABC book I have ever seen. The pages are not thick as in most ABC books, but torn pages are worth the risk to introduce your child to the likes of Ulysses Unicorn and Elvis Evergreen (with wife Elvira)." Sue Morris, Kid Lit Reviews

Edition details

• Publisher: Patience Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1892220105
• ISBN 13: 9781892220103
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 34
• Illustrator: Robert C. Mason