Musical Instruments from A to Z

Christine Linge is a past director of the Toronto & District Parent
Co-operative Preschool Corporation, a freelance writer, and a bookseller
specializing in children’s literature.

Crabtree Publishing’s AlphaBasiCs series explores historical, social,
and artistic themes using the alphabet as a frame of reference. Because
of the young reader’s familiarity with the ABCs, defined topics are
easy to remember and quick to access. At the same time, curiosity about
what each letter will bring encourages exploration (young readers will
check out their favorite letters, such as their initials.) Featuring a
mixture of excellent photographs and drawings by many talented artists,
with conscientious attention to gender and race equity, each volume also
includes a glossary (“Words to Know”) and an index. End papers and
glossy covers promise a long shelf life.

Musical Instruments is one of the most attractive volumes in the
series, with beautiful, illuminated capitals and golden musical staves
gracing each page. The many reproductions of paintings of musicians, and
photographs of shiny instruments make this volume a visual feast. Each
entry is composed as a riddle, describing the musical topic and
encouraging the reader to guess the subject. Groups of instruments are
discussed under “S is for strings,” “W is for woodwinds,” and
“H is for horns.” Several examples of instruments from around the
globe (like the Chinese Ch’ing) keep this volume from being
Eurocentric. Under “I” the reader will find instructions for making
several simple instruments. Highly recommended.