Twenty-six Pirates: An Alphabet Book - Hardcover

Horowitz, Dave

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0399257772 ISBN 13: 9780399257773

Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books, 2013

Synopsis

Dave Horowitz’s swashbuckling cut-paper artwork is packed with clever details in this epic companion to his popular Twenty-six Princesses.

This rhyming alphabet book is chock full of fun as 26 mischievous pirates head to Captain Frogbeard’s ship where they hope to join the crew—and the fun! From Arty to Zach, the Pirates of the Alphabet are the most colorful crew on the high seas!

About this title

About the Author:

Dave Horowitz (www.horowitzdave.com) wrote and illustrated Twenty-six Princesses (and about a dozen other children’s favorites, including The Ugly Pumpkin, Five Little Gefiltes, Humpty Dumpty Climbs Again and Chico the Brave). He lives in New York’s Hudson Valley.

From School Library Journal:

PreS-Gr 1-Despite appealingly piratical illustrations, this swashbuckling title is thin on story and unsuccessful as an alphabet book. Each letter is represented by a boy's name, followed by a rhyming statement about him. It begins, "Pirate Arty. First to the party" and ends with, "Pirate Zach. The final attack." While the concept is clever enough, the names are written in a medieval-style type, preventing easy recognition by youngsters learning their letters. Additionally, the name choices are not always effective at presenting the appropriate sounds. The most problematic is the letter "J," Pirate Juan, which does not make the English "j" sound. The humorous collage illustrations are grotesquely cartoonish, slightly reminiscent of the work of David Shannon or Victoria Chess. The multicultural boys have huge, blocklike teeth, oversize heads, semicircle noses, and googly eyes. Busily doing everything from eating, to swimming, to walking the plank, they are joined on every page by bug-eyed frogs that add to the humor and tie the story together. The art will likely be a big hit with pirate fans everywhere, and a few sophisticated asides will appeal to parents, but those hoping for a plot or in search of books for an alphabet bin will need to look elsewhere.-Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CTα(c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

About this edition

• Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0399257772
• ISBN 13: 9780399257773
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Horowitz Dave