Customer Reviews

ABC: A Child's First Alphabet Book

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I wasn't especially impressed when I first saw this book. A is for apple, B is for balloon, C is for cow, basic stuff. The only thing interesting was "X marks the spot" instead of "X is for X-ray or Xylophone".

Then I realized that I'd seen many of the creatures in Z is for zoo earlier in the book.

So I re-read it. Several re-reads later, I realized that there was a tentative story in this book. Do the women and the man love each other? They write letters. Hearts are a periodic motif. The woman paints, the man explores. Do they miss each other?

So maybe a toddler won't understand that. But this is an alphabet book they'll read past toddlerhood.

This is a wonderful book for babies up to preschool. The pictures are simple at first, but the harder you look the more you see. My two year old enjoys shouting out everything she sees in the pictures. It is fun for us as parents to read as well. We try to find everything with that letter. It is kind of like a Where's Waldo for little ones.

I love reading this book to my 7 month old. The illustrations are gorgeous for adults to enjoy and whimsical and fun for children to gaze at. Every time we read it, I find something new I hadn't seen before -- it's such an inventive book with a lovely little "storyline" and connections between pages. We'll never get bored with it!

Beautiful pictures. There are many things to discover on each page that begin with the corresponding letter, making it simple for younger children, and more complex for older kids. We are big fans of Alison Jay in our house. She's made some really nice books.

My 2 1/2 year old son loves the pictures in the book. They are very vivid, colorful and fun! The text is very simple and fun which is age appropriate.
I would recommend this book as an early, fun introduction to the alphabet.

This is a deceptively simple book which reveals additional details upon almost every reading! Have many alphabet books which are largely simple and my little guy quickly becomes bored. Not so with this one which has many details with each picture telling almost a little story. This is a must by for toddlers and preschoolers!

I am a big fan of Alison Jay. Her books are always beautifully illustrated and artistic. This book is one of my favorites. With a little imagination, you can tell a story either by reading just one page or the book.

What a wonderful surprise! This book is by far the most original ABC book I've come across. The first thing you observe are the beautiful illustrations, then you notice additional pictures that illustrate the letter on the page and connections between pages, and finally a beautiful story unfolds that becomes more detailed every time you read the book. Amazingly simple and complex at the same time, it's a book that will entertain the youngest through the oldest of readers and grow along with them all. I'll be ordering Alison's other books!

I bought this book for my 3 year-old son and he loves it. The illustrations are really beautiful and it is a sturdy book that is perfect for young children. I highly recommend this book.

I recently discovered _A B C: A Child's First Alphabet Book_ by Alison Jay. What a delight! Each letter of the alphabet is given a full page, if not a two-page spread. The text is very simple, following the "A is for apple" format. Both upper- and lowercase versions of the target letter are shown.

The art, however, is extraordinary! It usually occupies most of the page with the target object most prominent. The subtleties, though, are what give this book its whimsical charm: other objects on the page that begin with the same letter (they are all listed on the last page) and the recurrence of objects throughout the book. Nearly every page contains as a small, obscure detail the object that will be prominently featured with the next letter of the alphabet. Sometimes these are embedded secondary details -- in the pattern of a plate, for example, or on the cover of a book.

Jay's book contains all the seeds for the discovery and excitement that prompt a child to exclaim, "Look! That's just like . . ." and scurry back through the pages, searching for the remembered image. The suggestion of a story line is there, too, with an explorer, a map, and a treasure chest.

I am so grateful to have discovered Alison Jay (both author and illustrator). _A B C: A Child's First Alphabet Book_ is the first book I have bought for my first grandchild, due to be born next month.