Customer Reviews

Creature ABC

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If kids had coffee tables, "Creature ABC" would be on them. It's an absolutely gorgeous book. In fact, it could very well be the sort of book that people buy for kids, look at 'carefully' with kids, and then put away for their children's children.

Which is to say that Andrew Zuckerman's photography and layout is amazing.

What you will fine in Mr. Zuckerman's book are various pictures of animals associated with letters of the alphabet. This, of course, is nothing new. But what makes these images special is the perspective and how everything is placed on the white-white background.

For example, for the letter "A" we have Alligator. Four pages for him. On one page there is only giant upper and lower case A's. On the two following pages there is our gator friend, in all his glory, along with the word 'alligator'. But what really struck me as wondrous, was the picture of his foot on the very first page. It's a macro shot and just stunning. You can see the remarkable bumpiness of the alligator's skin, and these long toenails. One amazing foot (that looks like it's had a pedicure).

Not all creatures have the same treatment. The elephant, with it's huge foot is shown up close along with another photo which is a head shot; but not the dove. With it's sweet pictures we get a sense of motion as she is caught in mid-flight. Other creatures are treated as a category. "I", for example, is for insects.

But no matter which letter/animal you choose, the images and poses are interesting. (The lion looks like he's had a glamour shot :)

Do check this one out. It's definitely worth a look.

Talking Points :::

o Amazing photography. The depth and clarity of the shots defies easy description.

o The paper is very nice: semi-gloss and thicker than normal.

o This book would make an excellent gift. I think there are elements that can be appreciated even by older children.

Pam T~

mom and reviewer at BooksForKids-reviews

Each year there's a spate of alphabet books that flood the market willy-nilly. And in this day and age when kids become jaded around the age of three, if you're going to do something abecedarian you're gonna need a gimmick. Maybe each letter will stand for a different amusing spy. Maybe they'll dance up a coconut tree to a jazzy jungle beat. Perhaps your alphabet will be constructed out of street signs and city symbols. Whatever it is, it better be great or the general buying public will have none of it. Andrew Zuckerman, by the way, has an alphabet book coming out this year. And I suppose you could say that he even has a gimmick, if by "gimmick" you mean "an awesome series of dead gorgeous photographs of every conceivable animal". Creature ABC is a kid-friendly version of the adult book Creature produced roughly two years ago. And like the kangaroo jumping away from the letter "K", this book offers a sharp kick to every grown-up and child lucky enough to get their hands on it. A book to remind you what photography's really all about.

The striped zebra endpapers offer right from the start the kind of stark black and white feel you're going to find in this book. Turn the pages and on the left-hand page is a leg. A leg covered in marbled black scales, opening up into a five-toed foot, three nails blunt and evident. On the right-hand page is just an "Aa". Turn the page again and you find yourself nose-to-nose with a full sized alligator. The word "alligator" is nestled to its right, and one green slitted eye watches you, hungry. This format continues throughout the book. You'll see a paired big letter and little letter, and a glimpse or full-frontal shot of the creature, then the reveal of the name on the next page. Sometimes the letter will reveal a whole group of critters. "Nn" is for "nocturnal" animals like the "American badger" or the "slow loris". And "Uu" for "underwater" animals. A Glossary at the end of the book offers small facts about some of the animals pictured.

The book actually contains a kind of narrative within its pages. The transition from "Kk" to "Ll" shows a kangaroo on the left-hand page looking at a lion on the right. And you begin to wonder if certain animals were paired together on purpose. For example, the "Jj" of the jackrabbit shows a strange jumping creature with relatively long legs. To put it right before the kangaroo is to create an interesting compare and contrast. So while the relationship between one animal and another isn't straightforward, there are little moments like these that keep them interesting.

You are left with a couple questions by the end, of course. For example, "Ff" is for frog, and on the first page you see a red-eyed tree frog. Turn the page, however, and not only is the tree frog making a leap for its life, but there's a strange albino froggy sitting there as well. What kind of frog is it? A trip to the Glossary at the back will yield few answers. The facts you find there are a bit random. Each one seems to have been chosen in terms of how well it fits on the page, rather than illuminating anything in the photograph. The species of the remarkably handsome rooster is left to you to determine on your own. There are some exceptions. For example, the sweat on the hippo is explained to be a kind of natural "hippo sunscreen".

In November of 2007 Andrew Zuckerman's book Creature was released to the adult market. Most of the photographs that you will find in this book appeared previously in the adult work. There are, however, a few exceptions. For Creature ABC Zuckerman added the hippopotamus, the penguins, a porcupine, a vulture, and an oryx. In the case of the vulture and oryx, one has to assume that the guy was scrambling to cover his alphabetic bases in the "V" and "X" departments. Sadly, this previous publication of images will keep this book from being eligible for certain literary awards, but aside from that there's aren't any problems with reusing an animal or two here. Of course, once you know that Zuckerman was choosing animals based on the photographs he'd taken before, some of the letters begin to make a little more sense. "Yy" for "Yellow Canary" for example. Or "Dd" for "Dove".

All things considered Creature ABC is perhaps one of the most beautifully photographed ABC books I've ever seen. Its white backgrounds will make you forget every GAP/Macintosh commercial you've ever watched, because the animals truly sell themselves. Zuckerman knows who the real stars of the show are here. And when a kid has a chance to examine each fold on an elephant's head and every quill on a porcupine's body, that's an experience they'll not soon forget. A jaw-dropping affair.

My two year old son loves this book. I first checked it out for him at the library, but he loved it so much that I bought a copy for him for Christmas. The animal pictures are great, and it helps my son learn his alphabet.

I ordered this as a gift for my young grandson, but the whole family enjoyed - and still enjoys - its magnificent illustrations. An heirloom!

We have a great collection of alphabet books, but this one stands head and shoulders, beak and tail above most of them! Amazing, spellbinding animal photography makes this a book that your children will get hours of pleasure from. It will also be one of those books that can stand the test of time for when the next generation is ready to learn the alphabet.

Some basic explanation: Each animal is assigned four pages. Two pages proclaim the letter in a big black font with a photo of that animal, while the next two pages give the animal's name with a different photo. All white backgrounds and a bold black font gives a no-nonsense attitude and puts the focus squarely on the animals.

As you can see by the examples here, this is truly astonishing photography. Some of the pictures appear so perfect that the animals don't even look real. Andrew Zuckerman first published Creature in 2007, which was 300 pages of studio portraits taken of 175 wild creatures, retailing for $60. He pared down the animals to fit the alphabet and added a few extras to bring us the more affordable version of Creature ABC. Check out the trailer below that shows some of the the studio time that went into the making of the original Creature.

If children had coffee tables, this would be on the top of the stack. They will come for the animals and stay for the entire alphabet. A beautiful book that we will look through again and again, long after the alphabet has been memorized. A great choice for all ages!

The excellent and highly detailed photographs of animals are highly appealing to children and adults. Font is large and simple. A great book for a kid who is old enough to carefully the pages. Book is more suitable for teaching kids a wide variety of animals, not the alphabet.

This has become my great niece's favorite book. She is 7 months old and grabs at each picture as if the creature could be captured in her hands they are so vivid and life-like. This book is stunning!

Perfect letter sizing, unique and captivating photography, includes upper and lowercase letters, and it has a weighty feel to it that my toddler seems to appreciate. It's a good buy.

This book by Andrew Zuckerman is a great example of the versatility of his work while set against a white minimalist background. Each image encapsulates the essence of each animal and with the association of the letters serves as a rich example of the simple ABC's.

This is just a great book! My kids now call it the "roar" book after seeing the lion so many times. Some of the animals associated with the alphabet are a little off like N for Nocturnal. The animals choices could be a little more child friendly. But overall, it is a great book, with great photograhy that catches my kids eyes all the time.