A, B, SEE!

Here Janovitz elaborates an idea that rightly helped Suze Macdonald earn a Caldecott Honor for Alphabatics (1986): Each letter of the alphabet transforms over four bright, simple cartoon panels into an animal (“A” to an “Alligator,” “B” to a “Beaver,” etc.). But the final panel, being hidden under a flap, gives this change an extra dimension by turning it into a guessing game. In several cases, however, she doesn’t play fair; despite several visual cues, first time viewers don’t stand much chance of figuring out “Lemur,” for instance, not to mention “Uta lizard,” or “Xiaosaurus.” Still, unlike Joose Goffin’s surrealistic Oh! (1991) and its sequels, this does provide an occasional opportunity for successful deduction, along with an enticing invitation to play with sequences and familiar shapes. (Picture book. 3-6)