Amazon Alphabet

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

This arresting alphabet book gives the impression of a contemporary one-man show: Martin Jordan's (Jungle Days, Jungle Nights) resplendent oil paintings "hang" against a white background, accompanied by minimal text. Next to many of the large-scale works, enlarged details spotlight specific attributes of the featured animals, adding drama and directing the reader's focus. The alphabet offers a convenient structure to link a broad mix of wild Amazon animals. A comfortable melange includes the ordinary (butterfly, dolphin, eagle, frog) and the peculiar (kinkajou, yapok, white-collared peccary). Both the text and illustrations catch the animals in characteristic behaviors ("Sloth grooming its coat," "Jaguar preparing to prowl") and habitats ("Caiman drowsing in the sun," "Zorro hidden in the tree"). Colorful endnotes will help parents and teachers rev up interest: in captivity, the red ouakari's signature bright-red face fades; "Sloths move so slowly that a plant called algae grows in their fur and camouflages them in the trees." Even for the alphabet-weary, this show is worth the price. Ages 3-5. (Apr.)

Children's Literature - Mary Sue Preissner

This book offers stunning detail in original oil paintings that bring the vibrance of the South American rainforest animals to this delightful alphabet book. From the Agouti eating Brazil nuts to the Zorro hidden in the tree, each animal is accompanied by its upper and lower case letter in complementary color to its illustration, one descriptive phrase, a small gray profile of the animal, and pronunciation of its name. The "Notes" section at the end of the book includes the upper case letter, the animal outline, and the animal name with a pronunciation guide, classification (insect, mammal, etc.) and two or more descriptive sentences. Did you know that the jaguar is the only big cat that does not roar or that the Amazon dolphin can only survive in fresh water?

School Library Journal

K-Gr 5-Magnificent oil paintings depict animals of the tropical rainforest. From agouti to zorro, the text provides a brief description of each creature, e.g., "Hh is for Hummingbird sipping nectar from a flower." Images such as a caiman's toothy grin reflected in yellow-green water or a multicolored, red-toed frog poised on a deep-green leaf bring the Amazon jungle to life. Endnotes offer paragraphs on each creature depicted. While this book cannot serve as an endpoint for study and research, it does provide an enormously appealing beginning.-Kathy Piehl, Mankato State University, MN

Carolyn Phelan

Wildlife of the Amazon region is featured in this large-format alphabet book, some on single pages and others on double-page spreads. A typical entry reads "O is for Ocelot protecting its kittens," accompanied by a large-scale painting of the three ocelots looking toward the viewer as though sitting for their portrait. The brilliantly colored paintings tend to have a dark, rather mysterious aura. A smaller panel repeats a detail from the painting, while a silhouette of the animal appears beside the phonetic pronunciation. The endnotes review each entry, including the name, the pronunciation, and the silhouette, and contain a couple of sentences about each insect, fish, reptile, amphibian, bird, or mammal. Like the Darlings' "Amazon ABC" (BKL Mr 1 96), this picture book will help fill the current demand for classroom materials on the rain forest.