April 15, 2022
A playful subversion of animal abecedaries. Heck plumbs 68 non-English languages for 26 animal names that begin with different letters or sounds than their English counterparts. Thus, "G is for Cat" for speakers of Spanish (gato), Ojibwe (gaazhagens), and Korean (goyangi). I is for fish, O for eagle, and S for Lion. Frequent last-place-holder zebra is under V here--"Varikkutirai," in Tamil. Heck includes languages spanning the globe, including those of several Native American tribes. As she explains in her author's note, some of the represented languages with non-Roman alphabets or alternate writing systems are transliterated to represent the sounds that speakers make when saying the animal name. Against richly colored backgrounds, the black-and-white scratchboard illustrations dramatically employ contrast and texture. Hand-lettered display type enhances the visual drama and zestfully celebrates the multiplicity of animal names. Cleverly, each letter is hidden somewhere in the composition of its illustrated page, adding an A-to-Z seek-and-find element for children. Readers are also invited to use publisher-supplied links to hear native or fluent speakers pronounce the animal names. An alphabetized index links the languages to their respective letter(s). Cultural or geographical addenda might have further enhanced children's understanding of this package's truly global nexus. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Combining visual verve with a sense of our worldwide connectedness, this both teaches and entertains. (Picture book. 4-8)
COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
March 1, 2022
It would seem that alphabet picture books have covered everything from A to Z (including mixing things up a la Bingham and Zelinsky's hilarious Z Is for Moose, rev. 3/12). Taking a more scholarly approach, Heck adds a new twist. For a familiar animal (a bee, for example), she has found names in different languages that begin with the same letter -- but not the same initial letter as the English word. The letter A is for "Anu in Igbo, Ari in Turkish, Aamoo in Ojibwe, and Abelha in Portuguese," all of which translate to bee in English. The pattern continues with "B is for monkey," "H is for tiger," and so on. Heck's stunning scratchboard illustrations are enhanced with bold colors; the image fills the entire page, with the animal taking up most of the space and the words placed around the central figure. Sixty-eight languages are represented; European languages such as French and German are featured among less frequently included world languages such as Azerbaijani, Cherokee, and Wolof. An author's note relates challenges inherent in this project and explains such terms as transliterated and Romanization. A big plus is the QR code that allows one to hear the words spoken by "native or fluent speakers." Although it could become repetitive to read this book at one sitting, the variety of languages and animals will keep curious kids poring over individual pages and thinking about the differences and similarities among languages. Susan Dove Lempke
(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)
Starred review from March 15, 2022
Grades K-3 *Starred Review* This abecedary of animals has many of the creatures you'd expect, like the elephant, monkey, and zebra, but not in the order you'd expect. While Heck does organize the animals by their first letter, she takes her cues from languages other than English. For instance, "R is for fox" in the French renard, Hungarian r�ka, Persian rub�h, and Kurdish rov�. In turn, each letter is a work of art with deep or vibrant colors serving as backdrops for the large, hand-lettered text and digitally enhanced scratchboard illustrations that spotlight the animal's beautiful texture, from a lion's lush mane to a jellyfish's luminous fluidity, and each picture conceals the featured letter for readers to find. The lettering also offers occasional surprises, such as the soft pink "P" that resembles the bird in "P is for flamingo" or the long, fuzzy-eared "L" in "L is for rabbit." In all, 69 languages are represented and can be found in a concluding index. A related website and QR code also allow readers to listen to native or fluent speakers pronounce the alphabet words. Finally, an author's note addresses some of the challenges of writing across languages, from transliteration to spelling changes (singular vs. plural) to the absence of certain words from one culture to the next. A gorgeous collection for linguists of all ages.
COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
January 1, 2022
It would seem that alphabet picture books have covered everything from A to Z (including mixing things up a la Bingham and Zelinsky's hilarious Z Is for Moose, rev. 3/12). Taking a more scholarly approach, Heck adds a new twist. For a familiar animal (a bee, for example), she has found names in different languages that begin with the same letter -- but not the same initial letter as the English word. The letter A is for "Anu in Igbo, Ari in Turkish, Aamoo in Ojibwe, and Abelha in Portuguese," all of which translate to bee in English. The pattern continues with "B is for monkey," "H is for tiger," and so on. Heck's stunning scratchboard illustrations are enhanced with bold colors; the image fills the entire page, with the animal taking up most of the space and the words placed around the central figure. Sixty-eight languages are represented; European languages such as French and German are featured among less frequently included world languages such as Azerbaijani, Cherokee, and Wolof. An author's note relates challenges inherent in this project and explains such terms as transliterated and Romanization. A big plus is the QR code that allows one to hear the words spoken by "native or fluent speakers." Although it could become repetitive to read this book at one sitting, the variety of languages and animals will keep curious kids poring over individual pages and thinking about the differences and similarities among languages.
(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)