26 Letters and 99 Cents

As is sometimes the case, my daughter requests a book over and over again much to my surprise. 26 Letters and 99 Cents by Tana Hoban is such a book, something we stumbled across in the library.

The book is two-in-one. One side of the book contains the letters of the alphabet - both upper case and lower case, along side a picture of a toy or a piece of fruit or some other kind of object that illustrates the letter. The version we checked out was dated - the pictures look like something from the '80s - but each image is colorful and my daughter liked talking about the connection between the letter and the object.

Flip the book over and each page is devoted to numbers.  For example, the number 4 is accompanied by 4 pennies while the number 5 is shown next to a nickel. My daughter doesn't grasp money yet so pointing to the coins has proven fruitless.  But she likes to recite the numbers out loud with me.  At some point, the book begins to count by 5 which is way beyond what my 3 year-old is managing with numbers.

Still, it's fun to flip the book, and she likes the colorful pictures. It also is fun for her to shout out something that she has been learning.  So this isn't necessarily a good night book but it's can be a fun take on counting on reciting the alphabet during a slow afternoon.

Kipper's A to Z: An Alphabet Adventure

Kipper's A to Z: An Alphabet Adventure is a charming romp through the alphabet for toddlers working their way from A to Z.  The book tells the story of Kipper and his little pig friend Arnold collecting various insects in a simple box. There is also an overly-eager Zebra, excited to make an appearance.

Both the images and the text are light and uncluttered, allowing the reader to focus on the letter in question. The story is also sweet, completely in keeping with the television series. For Kipper fans, this book is a must.

A is for Art

I did not want to get this book. My daughter picked out A is for Art by Stephen T. Johnson at the library, and I tried to dissuade her. "See? There are no animals in here." But she persisted, and all I could think was: what am I going to make up to say about this one?



And the book has sat toward the bottom of the pile, with me subtly directing her to other options at reading time. Last night she used my own words on me: "Let's just read it once, and if we don't like it, we never have to read it again." How could I refuse?

A is for Art is a delightful book, it turns out. Each letter is accompanied by a painting, or a picture of a sculpture, and then is artfully described using almost exclusively words that start with the letter in question.  For example:

"Cc Camouflage
Countless colorful candies consciously collected, crammed, crushed, and confined crowd a clear circular container filled to capacity."

The words are beyond my 3 year old, but she enjoys hearing them and searching the text for the letter that is being highlighted. The art accompanying the text is also a 'find the hidden object' game wherein a child can look for the letter and other items mentioned in the description of the art.

The art featured in the book is, naturally, age appropriate and beautifully photographed.

Not only is this a great book for reinforcing the letters of the alphabet, but it is a fun book for talking about art and would make a fantastic primer before a trip to a museum or sculpture garden.