ABC's of the Sea

This book is a really spectacular take on the ABC's format! The illustrations are just beautiful, and hook adults and children immediately with their vibrant colors and intersting details.More importantly, the text of this book is superior - the author somehow manages to combine wonderfully flowing rhymes with new and interesting vocabulary to teach the basics of the alphabet. My son and I particularly enjoyed being able to use the helpful glossary to learn the meanings and pronunciations of some of the more unusual words. We also love reading this book year-round: in the summer in makes us look forward to trips to the beach and lake, and in the winter, it gives us a sunny break from dreary days.Overall, this is truly one of the best books in this genre I've ever seen as a parent, and one of my son's absolute favorites.We highly recommend it to any parent, and particulary think it would be a great book to read to multiple children of various ages - there is a something of interest for everyone, no matter their reading level.

ABC's of the Sea is not a run-of-the-mill picture book. It works on many levels and for multiple age groups.Each page features a letter of the alphabet along with an appropriate sea creature or sea subject. For example: "Ff is for fish."Nothing different here, is there?Well, yes, there is. One page starts with the featured letter and the next page begins with a beginning word. "Gull begins with Gg." The pages alternate that way throughout the book.Along the bottoms of the pages are sentences like: "Fantastic fish float with fins" or "Sea gulls glide in gusty gales."These sentences, as with all the others, allow an older child to read to a younger one, allow any child to build his vocabulary, and keep this book from getting stale.The alphabetic glossary in the back contains the pronunciation of selected words and their definitions.Another feature is the page borders. Pictures surround the pages with sea horses, turtles, life preservers, canoes, and lobsters, to name a few. If you'd like, you can use the edge pictures to count. You can count total items in some pictures or pick out items that are the same or different.The other thing I noticed is that each page has some action. Dolphins play with balls and rings, gulls fly in the sky, a ship heads for harbor in a stormy sea. The pictures aren't static.As I've said, this book works on many levels and is one your child won't outgrow too soon.