An Edible Alphabet

Gr 1—4—This engaging and informative foray into farms of all kinds practically bursts with the creators' enthusiasm for their subject. Sorrentino's boldly colored illustrations, comprised of collages with hand-painted papers and acrylics, capture the eye as surely as Watterson's bouncy text captures the ear. The book succeeds on many levels; each letter features an alliterative and/or silly sentence or two, suitable for a classroom storytime, while additional text offers more information about the plants and animals featured on a spread. The text throughout boasts a playful style, as when asparagus are described as "little green soldiers poking their heads through the brown earth" and when vegetables on their way to the market share an imaginary conversation. This title blends the factual and the imaginative in a way that always makes the facts clear, from "Ants on Asparagus" right through to "Zoom Zoom Zucchini" (accompanied by directions for making a zucchini race car).—Kathleen Kelly MacMillan, Carroll County Public Library, MD