Farms ABC

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-Excellent, full-page colored photos are the highlights of these books. The letters themselves are shown (both capitals and lower case) in contrasting color to the two to three sentences on each page. Facts are very general and simple. However, the text in all cases is bland, and irritating in spots for its tendency to use words that rhyme sporadically without the structure of a two-line couplet (e.g., "A notebook holds the things you write./It's bound with wire, nice and tight,/so you don't lose your papers" (School). Homes does not identify the type of dwelling on the cover or where people live in the houses pictured in a tree (referred to obliquely in the Fun Facts) and underground. There is some inevitable stretching to use "z" for "kibbutz" (Homes) or "zoom" (School), "x" for "fix" (Farm), etc. The books do not always cover the basic facts of their subject because of format limitations. The glossary and index are for the most part superfluous and arbitrary-the index generally just repeats the words used for each letter in the body of the books. Strictly additional purchases where there is a need for very simple nonfiction material for preschoolers and primer readers.-Judith Constantinides, formerly at East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.