ABC Games

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2 In this seemingly innocuous alphabet/concept book, children are called upon to choose one of four objects that belongs with the picture on the opposite page. Each letter of the alphabet is given on the left-hand page, with a full-color drawing such as E for egg, L for lock. The facing page presents, in the case of the egg, pictures of a raccoon, a chicken, a rabbit, and a dog, and asks, ``Which one laid the egg?'' Unfortunately, the book comes off as a kind of mini-SAT for preschoolers, with some of the same negative implications, encouraging convergent rather than divergent thinking. A bone, a bunch of grapes, an apple, and an orange are offered as choices for D, dogwhich one will the dog like? Any self-respecting dog eats all four, and the bone would be last. Colors are vibrant , and the familiar Disney-like cartoon drawings may appeal to children. There is humor in several of the choices represented, but objections to the nature of the text outweigh the good points. Furthermore, the drawings with humans reflect a sexist bias. Librarians needing more alphabet books should consider those that challenge children's creativity, as does Kitchen's Animal Alphabet (Dial, 1984). Leda Schubert, Grand Avenue School, Uniondale, N.Y.