FICTION

Take Away the A

by Michaël ESCOFFIER
illus. by Kris Di Giacomo. 56p. Enchanted Lion. 2014. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781592701568.
COPY ISBN
Gr 1–3—This is a clever and engaging "alphabeast of a book" for children capable of basic word recognition. The premise is that less is indeed more, as Escoffier moves through the alphabet, and removes a letter on each spread. Taking away an "A," "B," or "C," etc., transforms each highlighted word into a totally new one, and the wacky, almost surreal (plants wearing pants) images reinforce the humor and add to the literal wordplay. For example, "Without the D DICE are ICE" shows a wolf and a goose playing cards, while sipping umbrella drinks with ivory cubes inside. "Without the K the MONKEY makes MONEY" features a monkey ringing up sales on a cash register at his banana stand. Kids will have fun coming up with, and illustrating, reductive examples of their own. Inspired and instructive silliness.—Luann Toth, School Library Journal
This creative twist on the traditional alphabet book takes a word (e.g., beast), removes one letter to make a new word (best), and imagines a scene that incorporates both: "Without the A / the BEAST is the BEST." Di Giacomo's outside-the-box illustrations interpret the word pairings in unexpected ways. Text and art play effortlessly off each other, enhancing humor and meaning.
A fresh and clever alphabet book. Starting with A, the letter is removed from a word, and each spread shows the results. “Without the C,” for example, “the CHAIR has HAIR.” “Without the K, the MONKEY makes MONEY.” And “without the N, the MOON says MOO!” Kris Di Giacomo’s illustrations add another level of wit and whimsy to Michaël Escoffier’s word shenanigans. For instance, dice, as ice, chill poker players’ drinks. For G, a glove falls in love—and scurries to a crosswalk after his paramour, an octopus. The silly situations and fun details (almost all the characters are either animals or inanimate objects, and a mouse reappears in many of the illustrations), invite readers to linger over the artwork. Sure to inspire children to craft their own word pairings: craft and raft? Pair and air? The possibilities are endless!
Here's a creative and sophisticated

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