A Little ABC Book
Jenny Palmer (2014)
Beat Books, 28pp, $25
An Alphabet book
Most
alphabet books are intended for the very young but A Little ABC Book has been written for older children who delight
in word play, puns and making interesting new additions to their vocabulary. The 26 animals chosen by Auckland author-artist
Jenny Palmer are an eclectic group, including the Bearded Dragon, Inchworm,
Narwhal, Meerkat, Lynx, Unicorn and Xerus.
Each beast has its own handsome
black and white illustration, showing it perched on the appropriate letter of
the alphabet, accompanied by an amusing quirky poem.
The
final verse of the Vole poem is a good example of the fun Palmer has with
words.
‘Voles are very well-evolved,
for when push comes to shove,Vole is (need we spell it out?)
an anagram of love.’
The
fun is inventive: ‘Wombats dig Australia,’
Elephants ‘blow their own trumpets’ and
a Yeti has ‘cool hair.’
The
book is handsomely designed with the large letters subtly blending into their
background colour. The text is perhaps a
mite too small for grandparents to read but the kind of youngsters who delight
in knowing that a family of sea otters is called a ‘raft’ or a ‘romp,’ will
relish the fun.
Trevor
Agnew
Full
publishing details:
A Little ABC Book Jenny Palmer (2014) Beat Books [Beatnik
Publishing, Auckland], 28pp, hardback $25ISBN 978 0 9922648 0 2
