The ABCs of Animals.

Janet Collins is a freelance writer in Sechelt, British Columbia.

These are not your typical alphabet books, in which A is for apple, B is for bee, and so forth. Rather, they are yet another series in Bobbie Kalman’s prolific list of books. As with all of Kalman’s books, there is a lot of excellent information here. At times, however, she appears to struggle to find a relevant word to fit with a corresponding letter.

Take The ABCs of Animals, for example. While most letters are devoted to an animal or class/order/family thereof, Kalman has opted to discuss habitat under the letter H. Why not horse? Well, because horse is listed under a word unfamiliar to most adults, let alone schoolchildren—ungulates. All four books also seem little more than a rehash of so many of Kalman’s other books, a fault with several of her other individuals books which is likely a shortcoming of any author as prolific as Kalman.

Such pickiness aside, the ABCs of the Natural World is a highly informative series. Beautiful photographs and colourful graphics help young readers better understand complex concepts. Some good examples are found in The ABCs of Plants, which contains a drawing of how plants use sunlight to make food via photosynthesis, and another showing the cross-section of a leaf’s cell structure. The ABCs of Oceans has a full-page illustration showing the various zones of the ocean’s depths. Quizzes included in The ABCs of Plants and The ABCs of Habitats add an extra element of fun to those books. Recommended.