The Alphabet

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

It is no big secret that most kids love animals. This five-volume set of
mini-books uses diverse animal themes to teach very young children the
alphabet, numbers, shapes, colours, and opposites. Each book features
more than a dozen bright, non-threatening panels that illustrate the
chosen theme. Besides a learning concept, the animals are also linked by
a common theme.

For example, in Numbers, readers are encouraged to count from one to 12
using farm animals, working their way from “One Rooster.
Cocka-doodle-do!” to “Nine Cows. Moo! Moo!” until they reach
“Twelve Sheep. Maa! Maa!” Opposites uses Arctic animals to compare
the themes of “Short, Tall”; “Near, Far”; “Wet, Dry”;
“Open, Closed”; “Big, Small”; “Light, Heavy”; “Inside,
Outside”; and “Summer, Winter.”

This is a fine beginner collection for children just learning to read.
Only one drawback: youngsters will find it very difficult to remove the
books from the main folder, because of an unconventional mounting
system. An adult should remove the books first, or some torn pages may
result. All of the volumes are highly recommended.