The Disappearing Alphabet - Softcover

Wilbur, Richard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 015216362X ISBN 13: 9780152163624

Publisher: Clarion Books, 2001

Synopsis

Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Wilbur turns his sharp eye to the noble alphabet and imagines what life would be like without these twenty-six little--but powerful--letters. Packed with humor and subtle wit, the verse in this captivating picture book is splendidly matched by Caldecott Medal winner David Diaz’s hilariously clever illustrations.

About this title

About the Author:

RICHARD WILBUR has twice been awarded the Pulitzer Prize and has also been honored with the National Book Prize, the Bollingen Prize, and the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Poetry. Mr. Wilbur resides in Cummington, Massachusetts, and Key West, Florida.

DAVID DIAZ won the Caldecott Medal for the illustrations in Smoky Night, written by Eve Bunting. He lives near San Diego, California.

From Kirkus Reviews:

The joining of the talents of the incandescent Diaz and the wry, venerable Wilbur has produced an enchanting picture book. ``If the alphabet began to disappear,/Some words would soon look raggedy and queer'' is the premise, and so Wilbur muses, one short verse for every letter, on what might happen if it faded away. The possibilities are droll, and his thoughts puckish, e.g., if the letter B, ``were absent, say, from BAT and BALL,/There'd be not big or little leagues AT ALL,'' and ``At breakfast time, the useful letter T/Preserves us all from eating SHREDDED WHEA.'' Diaz's computer-generated illustrations are a glorious foil for the poems; in glowing stained-glass hues and candy colors, he makes silhouettes and cut-outs, curlicues and patterns reminiscent of everything from ColorForms to Mexican papercuts. The figures are imagined strongly and with humor; for W, a werewolf and watermelon share the stage, while a Roman legionnaire appears with Wilbur's mince pie and marshmallows for the letter (and Roman numeral) M. It's a slyand beautifulupending of the world of letters. (Picture book. 4-10) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Clarion Books
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 015216362X
• ISBN 13: 9780152163624
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Diaz David