A Helpful Alphabet of Friendly Objects: Poems

Poems and photographs present common objects for each letter of the alphabet

Kindergarten-Grade 2?Updike's brief poems describe common everyday animals and objects from A-Z in language that is lively, succinct, and fun: "A dog/is jumpier;/its fur/is clumpier;/its tail/is thumpier;/but rarely/(compared to a cat)/is it grumpier." The appealing full-color photos range from sharply focused closeups to reflections and sweeping action shots of adorable animals and photogenic children. Each page has a different colored background, and the layout is varied and creative. The "Y" page, for "you," features kids of various ages and ethnic backgrounds playing, napping, and posing. This is not a memorable collection of poetry, but it's an entertaining selection that can be used as a concept book.?Christine A. Moesch, Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, NY
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In addition to illustrious name of Updike, this extraordinary alphabet book offers numerous rewards-poems that are by turns thoughtful and lively; crisp photographs that seem both familiar and new; and a book design so fresh and appealing as to ensure repeat readings. Each poem and photograph describes ordinary things-apple, cat, eggs, shoes and socks-in language and images playfully accessible to preschoolers. "At evening/ when the grass is dewy," reads the poem for "R," "out hops the rabbit/ feeling chewy." For the letter H, a photo shows a boy crouched beside a gleaming chrome hubcap in which his image is reflected "stretched sideways like gum." Clever design elements begin with bright endpapers that repeat the interior photographs and letters; within, the typeface in "D" changes with each word comparing dogs and cats (a dog is "jumpier," its tail is "thumpier," etc.) in a kind of visual onomatopoeia; the words of the K-is-for-knot poem loop and meander to mimic "the thing that happens to string"; the photos appear in ovals and circles as well as standard squares and rectangles. This book is an introduction not only to letters but to looking at people and objects "as if you were/ inside them for a ride." Ages 3-8.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ages 3^-7. Although the title is one that neither librarians nor patrons will remember, the poems in this book present a refreshing look at everyday things--from hubcaps to vacuum cleaners: "In goes dirt, / out comes noise! / Rumpling the rug and scattering toys." Updike uses the letter Y to represent You ("You are an object, / yes, you are" ) and encourages children to imagine themselves inside other objects. Relying on the numerous clues found in the crisp, alluringly composed photographs, primary-graders will be able to read many of the poems alone, getting additional enjoyment from the way Updike uses punctuation. The endpapers offer close-cropped versions of the photographs, which children can pair with nearby letters for a matching game. Susan Dove Lempke