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E-mergency!
It s an E-mergency! The letter E has fallen down the stairs and ended up in the hospital. Now the only way to get her back on her feet is for everyone to stop using her. But who will substitute for E? The other letters have to make a decision, ASAP. Z is too sleepy, P is always in the bathroom, and Y asks way too many questions. Thankfully, O rolls in to save the day, because he's "so well-rounded." Now E can rost up and got bottor . . . as long as ovorybody follows the rulos.Chock-full of verbal and visual puns, this zany book is sure to tickle both the brain and the funny bone.
40 pages, Hardcover
First published August 26, 2011
38 people are currently reading
512 people want to read
About the author
Tom Lichtenheld
63 books204 followersChildren's book author/illustrator writes for kids who love to laugh and grown-ups who love to laugh along with them. When not making up stories and drawing silly pictures, he likes to get other people's kids all riled-up then send them home to their parents.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 267 reviews
February 9, 2012
Don't be deceived by the alphabet theme; this ABColutely deee-lightful picture book, chock-full of wordplay, visual puns, and my favorite device - breaking the fourth wall - is for older kids. Like my 12-year-old, who giggled right through it as we identified side jokes sprinkled generously throughout the illustrations (I bet we missed a lot more). When the letter E takes a tumble and lands in the hospital, well-rounded O is called on to fill in for her. Since E must rest up, she's not allowed to work... so every use of the letter "E" is replaced by "O" for the duration. The local school gets a new sign: "Roosovolt Momorial School" (and a reminder of a "spolling tost today"!). Inquisitive Y asks "why isn't our buddy gotting bottor?" And indeed, E isn't getting better - until it's discovered that SOMEONE isn't letting her rest! Challenging and hilarious to read aloud, and not a book to rush through, this is a fabulous choice for sophisticated 2nd & 3rd graders and their older siblings. I give it 5 stars and 5 vowels.
December 7, 2011
Hilarious picture book about what happens when the letter E is injured and must stay out of action for a while. O has to replace him, and that's 'not oasy!'. Adults might even enjoy it more than kids!
November 5, 2011
2 November 2011 E-MERGENCY! by Tom Lichtenheld and Ezra Fields- Meyer, Chronicle, October 2011, 40p., ISBN: 978-0-8118-7898-2
"'Why isn't E even crying?' [asks the letter Y, who is always asking questions]
"'Sometimes she's a silent E.'" [responds the well-rounded letter O, who is going to get mighty busy in a minute]
Third, fourth, and fifth graders love to engage in word play involving double meanings. They are learning to pick up on puns and they are gobbling up joke books. Nowadays, so many of these same kids are also becoming computer literate and are encountering and employing all sorts of texting abbreviations. (I recently read an article about how learning to use these abbreviations can actually enhance spelling ability.)
They also love poring over books that are filled with visual details. Hanging out in a school library with middle grade kids given free time, it is easy to see what made Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick's I SPY books and Joan Steiner's LOOK-ALIKES books such an enduring phenomenon.
Each time I read through E-MERGENCY, the story of the letter E falling down the stairs and -- while recuperating -- needing to be temporarily replaced by the letter O ("That's right. Starting right NOW it's O instead of E. That's it, PORIOD."), I keep zeroing in on more and more fun details and word plays that punctuate this high-action letter drama. For example, among the happenings on one page, there is the letter X on the stairs, pointing out to everyone where E tripped. (Get it? X marks the spot.) One of the scenes on a following page is of four letters calling out to the EMT staff, "'Andiamo', 'Speed it up!', 'Vigorously!', 'Pronto!" Which four letters? It's A, S, V (doing a hand stand impersonation of an A), and P. Get it? ASAP.
The streaming digital news display outside of Mol's Dinor says it all: "IMPORTANT LOTTER HURT!! 'O' DOOS DOUBLO DUTY!" (The back endpages contain a graphic showing each letter's frequency of use in the English language from most to least frequent. Guess who is Number One on the chart?)
This is such a fun and goofy tale. It involves a R-O-A-D T-W-I-P, a mystery about E's failure to recuperate quickly (thanks, we find out, to the narrator's negligence) and, at the conclusion, a house party to celebrate E's return.
And, in between, the need to replace every E with an O yiolds scoros of tonguo-tanglod mayhom.
Chock it out!
Richio Partington, MLIS
Richio's Picks http://richiespicks.com
BudNotBuddy@aol.com
Modorator http://groups.yahoo.com/group/middle_...
http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/people/facult...
"'Why isn't E even crying?' [asks the letter Y, who is always asking questions]
"'Sometimes she's a silent E.'" [responds the well-rounded letter O, who is going to get mighty busy in a minute]
Third, fourth, and fifth graders love to engage in word play involving double meanings. They are learning to pick up on puns and they are gobbling up joke books. Nowadays, so many of these same kids are also becoming computer literate and are encountering and employing all sorts of texting abbreviations. (I recently read an article about how learning to use these abbreviations can actually enhance spelling ability.)
They also love poring over books that are filled with visual details. Hanging out in a school library with middle grade kids given free time, it is easy to see what made Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick's I SPY books and Joan Steiner's LOOK-ALIKES books such an enduring phenomenon.
Each time I read through E-MERGENCY, the story of the letter E falling down the stairs and -- while recuperating -- needing to be temporarily replaced by the letter O ("That's right. Starting right NOW it's O instead of E. That's it, PORIOD."), I keep zeroing in on more and more fun details and word plays that punctuate this high-action letter drama. For example, among the happenings on one page, there is the letter X on the stairs, pointing out to everyone where E tripped. (Get it? X marks the spot.) One of the scenes on a following page is of four letters calling out to the EMT staff, "'Andiamo', 'Speed it up!', 'Vigorously!', 'Pronto!" Which four letters? It's A, S, V (doing a hand stand impersonation of an A), and P. Get it? ASAP.
The streaming digital news display outside of Mol's Dinor says it all: "IMPORTANT LOTTER HURT!! 'O' DOOS DOUBLO DUTY!" (The back endpages contain a graphic showing each letter's frequency of use in the English language from most to least frequent. Guess who is Number One on the chart?)
This is such a fun and goofy tale. It involves a R-O-A-D T-W-I-P, a mystery about E's failure to recuperate quickly (thanks, we find out, to the narrator's negligence) and, at the conclusion, a house party to celebrate E's return.
And, in between, the need to replace every E with an O yiolds scoros of tonguo-tanglod mayhom.
Chock it out!
Richio Partington, MLIS
Richio's Picks http://richiespicks.com
BudNotBuddy@aol.com
Modorator http://groups.yahoo.com/group/middle_...
http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/people/facult...
November 5, 2012
Opening Lines/Synopsis:
“All the letters lived together in a big house. Every morning they ran downstairs to breakfast.”
The letters of the alphabet all live together in a house and have different jobs to do. En route for breakfast one morning, the letter E tumbles down the stairs. Oh, no! It’s an emergency! The letter X helpfully marks the spot where E tripped, meanwhile A jumps into action and asks J to call 911. E is rushed hospital, but lack of E throws so many words into confusion and a replacement must be found. The obvious choice is O, who is well-rounded, especially as other, like Y asks too many questions, and Z proves too sleepy! Mad, manic and zany antics ensue as the 25 letters collaborate to find a solution to E’s absence and conveying the necessary information to the community. An announcement is made on television shows and in newspapers to alert the public that E is out of service and O will stand in. D and C ”travol to Washington to alort the govornmont.” Meanwhile back in the hospital, E’s recovery appears slow and his co-letters, upset by this news, pursue a culprit, who must have been “disoboying tho lottor of tho law!”
“It’s like Chicka Chicka Boom Boom on steroids.”- Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Visual and print punnery will have elementary kids (and adults) guessing and laughing”. – Kirkus Reviews
Why I like this book:
This alphabet book is packed with puns, acronyms and side-splitting humour, in both its words and illustrations. Preschoolers will not get the word-play, but will be stimulated by the simple storyline and zany, active cartoon-like illustrations and it can be used for letter recognition. Older children will love the word/letter-play. Adults will enjoy the wit too, and the ending is satisfactorily unexpected.
One of the reasons I appreciate this wacky book is that It was inspired by Ezra Fields Meyer, a teen boy on the autistic spectrum, who is an expert animator, who had created a short animation video titled Alphabet House when he was 12 (he’s now in grade 10). Tom Lichtenfeld contacted Ezra after watching this inspirational video, and this unusual book collaboration evolved.
The colorful spreads are very detailed and time needs to be taken with the illustrations to appreciate all the humour therein. P is in the bathroom in the first illustration…if that gives you a sense of the laugh-out-loud illustrative jokes!
Accolades:
Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2011
Association for Library Service to Children, Notable Children’s Picture Books 2012 nominee
ChildrensBookGuide.com Best Children’s Books of 2011 selection
Boston Globe, Best Books of the Year 2011 selection
“All the letters lived together in a big house. Every morning they ran downstairs to breakfast.”
The letters of the alphabet all live together in a house and have different jobs to do. En route for breakfast one morning, the letter E tumbles down the stairs. Oh, no! It’s an emergency! The letter X helpfully marks the spot where E tripped, meanwhile A jumps into action and asks J to call 911. E is rushed hospital, but lack of E throws so many words into confusion and a replacement must be found. The obvious choice is O, who is well-rounded, especially as other, like Y asks too many questions, and Z proves too sleepy! Mad, manic and zany antics ensue as the 25 letters collaborate to find a solution to E’s absence and conveying the necessary information to the community. An announcement is made on television shows and in newspapers to alert the public that E is out of service and O will stand in. D and C ”travol to Washington to alort the govornmont.” Meanwhile back in the hospital, E’s recovery appears slow and his co-letters, upset by this news, pursue a culprit, who must have been “disoboying tho lottor of tho law!”
“It’s like Chicka Chicka Boom Boom on steroids.”- Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Visual and print punnery will have elementary kids (and adults) guessing and laughing”. – Kirkus Reviews
Why I like this book:
This alphabet book is packed with puns, acronyms and side-splitting humour, in both its words and illustrations. Preschoolers will not get the word-play, but will be stimulated by the simple storyline and zany, active cartoon-like illustrations and it can be used for letter recognition. Older children will love the word/letter-play. Adults will enjoy the wit too, and the ending is satisfactorily unexpected.
One of the reasons I appreciate this wacky book is that It was inspired by Ezra Fields Meyer, a teen boy on the autistic spectrum, who is an expert animator, who had created a short animation video titled Alphabet House when he was 12 (he’s now in grade 10). Tom Lichtenfeld contacted Ezra after watching this inspirational video, and this unusual book collaboration evolved.
The colorful spreads are very detailed and time needs to be taken with the illustrations to appreciate all the humour therein. P is in the bathroom in the first illustration…if that gives you a sense of the laugh-out-loud illustrative jokes!
Accolades:
Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2011
Association for Library Service to Children, Notable Children’s Picture Books 2012 nominee
ChildrensBookGuide.com Best Children’s Books of 2011 selection
Boston Globe, Best Books of the Year 2011 selection
February 22, 2012
If you've got a youngster in the preschool and early-elementary age range then you are probably familiar with Tom Lichtenheld's funny and brilliant books: Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site, Shark vs. Train, and Duck! Rabbit!
In E-MERGENCY!, he and newcomer, Ezra Fields-Meyer, have fun with the Alphabet. The story is that all the letters of the alphabet live together in a big house. Everything's going along fairly well --okay F didn't have a good report card-- until E has an accident. Then the world has to get along without E while she recuperates. Actually, I guess that should be 'sho rocuporatos'. The letter O, you see, takes E's place.
Chaos ensues and the puns and jokes never stop until the book comes to an End. And I think most kids are going to enjoy the humor and bright, cheerful artwork. As far as the audience, I believe that slightly older in-school children are going to get the most out of E-MERGENCY! since many of the jokes and puns are based on spelling and punctuation. There's a joke, for example, where the letter A tells J: "J,walk across the street and get the numbers so we can call 911! (ha-ha)
This book is at the AD480L Lexile level and I think it would be an excellent addition to classroom libraries as I think E-MERGENCY! offers a great way to get children to think about letters, words, and language; especially now that are beginning to read for themselves. There's a chart on the inside cover, by the way, that gives the English Language Letter Frequency. E, of course, is the most commonly used letter, while Z is the rarest, only being found 0.074% of the time.
Pam T~
mom/blogger
In E-MERGENCY!, he and newcomer, Ezra Fields-Meyer, have fun with the Alphabet. The story is that all the letters of the alphabet live together in a big house. Everything's going along fairly well --okay F didn't have a good report card-- until E has an accident. Then the world has to get along without E while she recuperates. Actually, I guess that should be 'sho rocuporatos'. The letter O, you see, takes E's place.
Chaos ensues and the puns and jokes never stop until the book comes to an End. And I think most kids are going to enjoy the humor and bright, cheerful artwork. As far as the audience, I believe that slightly older in-school children are going to get the most out of E-MERGENCY! since many of the jokes and puns are based on spelling and punctuation. There's a joke, for example, where the letter A tells J: "J,walk across the street and get the numbers so we can call 911! (ha-ha)
This book is at the AD480L Lexile level and I think it would be an excellent addition to classroom libraries as I think E-MERGENCY! offers a great way to get children to think about letters, words, and language; especially now that are beginning to read for themselves. There's a chart on the inside cover, by the way, that gives the English Language Letter Frequency. E, of course, is the most commonly used letter, while Z is the rarest, only being found 0.074% of the time.
Pam T~
mom/blogger
November 24, 2011
This is a deliciously delightful book filled with word play and visuals that will have readers laughing and wanting to share some of the lines with others. The premise that all the letters of the alphabet live together in one house is sound, and the letters all have different jobs to do. When E gets hurt one day while rushing down the stairs and must recuperate, there is a moratorium placed on the use of the letter E. Since O is called upon to fill E's place, many confusing words are created, and everyone except the narrator stops using the letter E. Just how important the letter E actually is becomes apparent through the story. The authors capture the personality of many of the letters quite well: Z is always sleepy; X always marks the spot; Q and U always appear together. Backmatter includes a list that shows the frequency of use of each letter, something Wheel of Fortune and Scrabble fans should note. One of my favorite lines involves E's failure to cry even while hurt. Says O, "Sometimes she's a silent E" (unpaginated). The ink, pastels, and colored pencil illustrations add to the fun and the letters' personalities. Clever, clever, clever!
November 21, 2011
This delightful and original alphabet book shows and tells with lots of jokes for those kids really familiar with their alphabet and sounds - 2nd grade-ish? The whole alphabet lives together in a house. When E slips and falls down the stairs, she is taken away to the hospital and, so she can recuperate, all the e's in words must now be replaced with o's. You try reading the rest of the book phonetically with all of the e's replaced with o's. It's hard. And fun. And silly. Look at how the letters stand together in different scenes and see what they spell. P and U? Yeah, they shouldn't sit together.
November 16, 2011
Oh, how I love this book. It's clever, funny and a true challenge to read out loud (think about NOT using any "e"s in words, and you'll understand why). But I truly fell head over heals for this book when I learned that the co-author, Ezra Fields-Meyer, is a young, autistic child who caught Lichtenheld's notice after creating an amazing animated short called "Alphabet House", which is the inspiration for this book. Ezra's story is so inspiring and heartwarming, and chronicled in a book by his father, Tom Fields-Meyer, called "Following Ezra".
September 17, 2014
Review of E-Mergency by Tom Lichtenheld.
My neighbour gave me this humorous children's book to read, because she thought I would enjoy it...and she was right! This is an entertaining book about the alphabet. What happens when the letter 'E' is out of the picture? The conversation becomes rather silly and hard to understand, especially when 'O' stands in for 'E'. The narrative is humorous and the illustrations are funny and colorful.
I chuckled over the puns. One missing letter makes a big difference in how we communicate. Don't have to be a child to enjoy the humor in this book!
My neighbour gave me this humorous children's book to read, because she thought I would enjoy it...and she was right! This is an entertaining book about the alphabet. What happens when the letter 'E' is out of the picture? The conversation becomes rather silly and hard to understand, especially when 'O' stands in for 'E'. The narrative is humorous and the illustrations are funny and colorful.
I chuckled over the puns. One missing letter makes a big difference in how we communicate. Don't have to be a child to enjoy the humor in this book!
December 2, 2011
The letter E breaks her legs and cannot be used at all or else she will not recover. Definitely for older readers of picture books even though it has to do with the alphabet. Pictures are cluttered and there are a lot of characters that make side comments, which the reader does not have to read to follow the story, but which add a lot to the story. Not recommended.
May 21, 2013
My friend Barbara told me about this book so I had to check it out. It was hard to read because all of the e's were replaced with o's! :) Joseph thought it was pretty funny so I'd say it was a winner!
January 15, 2012
Made me giggle out loud more than a few times - so it gets 5 stars just for that. :)
November 19, 2019
Good book for any child who is learning their ABC's. It had every letter in it and its a fun way for them to learn it.
July 10, 2020
Egads! Emergency! Holp!
September 20, 2023
Lots of fun play on words 😊 But it isn’t easy to read out loud when E gets hurt & is gone through most of the book 😁
April 18, 2012
Eeeeks! The letter E is falling down the stairs! All the letters of the alphabet live in one big house, and so they all came running to see if E was hurt. Letters R and U asked, "E! Are you OK?" and the letters O and K said, "No, we are." The letter X helpfully marked the spot where E tripped.
Do you see where this is headed? Those are the puns from just one page! With E in the hospital, A took charge (always first, you see):
"Someone is going to have to take the place of E while she gets better. O, you're the obvious option because you're so well-rounded." (get it, well-rounded?! hee, hee, hee)
Kid will love seeing the havoc caused by this plan. There is a "Spocial Bullotin" on television, with Exclamation Mark giving the announcement: "Do! Not! Uso! E! until! Sho! Rocovors!" They'll laugh at the store signs: "Ico croam" "Jan's Shoo Shop" and "Targot".
Clearly, this book is meant for proficient readers who can figure out all the word puns. 2nd and 3rd graders have loved reading it again and again, looking for all the puns and jokes hidden within the busy pages. This is not your typical alphabet book for little kids, but rather one layered with all sorts of jokes that older kids will enjoy.
Do you see where this is headed? Those are the puns from just one page! With E in the hospital, A took charge (always first, you see):
"Someone is going to have to take the place of E while she gets better. O, you're the obvious option because you're so well-rounded." (get it, well-rounded?! hee, hee, hee)
Kid will love seeing the havoc caused by this plan. There is a "Spocial Bullotin" on television, with Exclamation Mark giving the announcement: "Do! Not! Uso! E! until! Sho! Rocovors!" They'll laugh at the store signs: "Ico croam" "Jan's Shoo Shop" and "Targot".
Clearly, this book is meant for proficient readers who can figure out all the word puns. 2nd and 3rd graders have loved reading it again and again, looking for all the puns and jokes hidden within the busy pages. This is not your typical alphabet book for little kids, but rather one layered with all sorts of jokes that older kids will enjoy.
January 31, 2012
The book E-mergency, written and illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld is a wonderfully illustrated children's story. I chose this 2011 Tom Lichtenheld original as a perfect book that in my opinion, should have won the 2011 Caldecott award. The book offers inticate, brightly colored, and animated illustrations that could grab the attention of any young child. Along with being intriguing to a young child, parents and teachers alike would appreciate the detail and creativity that are apparent in the illustrations throughout the entire book. The illustrations are not only masterfully created, they improve the overall understanding and emphasis of the text that they support. The quality of the art in the book is wonderful, and it is an extension of the text, making the plot and storyline flow in a more coherent manner. Without the wonderful illustrations, this children's book would not be nearly as effective. I feel as though the book would be a classical favorite for any elementary grade. The bright colors and detailed figures throughout, would excite and interest the minds of any elementary age child. These are the reasons that I feel the book should have won the 2011 Caldecott award.
December 20, 2011
When the letter E runs down the stairs a little too quickly in her efforts to get to breakfast, she takes quite a spill and is injured. The doctor orders E on strict rest, so A takes over (he is Assertive, after all) and determines that O must take E's place until she has recovered. And trust mo, this makos for somo clover and knoo-slapping ontortainmont.
Oh my stars, this book is a gem. (Or should I say, "a gom"?) There is so much humor in every illustration. Every detail has meaning, and I missed several jokes the first time I read it through. My favorite line: "This won't bo oasy." Makes me giggle every single time.
While I'm not sure this would make a great read-aloud (too much dialogue and action) I do think it would make for a terrifically fun Readers Theater script for older kids. I also think reading this would improve a student's phonics skills. Or maybe I just want it to be useful as well as funny.
With all the puns and clever humor here, this book couldn't have boon oasy for Tom Lichtenheld to write, but I'm glad he did.
Oh my stars, this book is a gem. (Or should I say, "a gom"?) There is so much humor in every illustration. Every detail has meaning, and I missed several jokes the first time I read it through. My favorite line: "This won't bo oasy." Makes me giggle every single time.
While I'm not sure this would make a great read-aloud (too much dialogue and action) I do think it would make for a terrifically fun Readers Theater script for older kids. I also think reading this would improve a student's phonics skills. Or maybe I just want it to be useful as well as funny.
With all the puns and clever humor here, this book couldn't have boon oasy for Tom Lichtenheld to write, but I'm glad he did.
July 7, 2012
This is an entertaining book about the alphabet. What happens when the letter 'E' is out of the picture? The conversation becomes rather silly and hard to understand, especially when 'O' stands in for 'E'. The narrative is humorous and the illustrations are funny and colorful.
I thought it was entertaining, but I was a bit surprised by the rave reviews I saw here after I first posted my review. I liked it, but it wasn't laugh-out-loud funny. I doubted that our girls would really appreciate this book, though, so I just read this one on my own. But seeing that so many older kids liked this book, perhaps I'll give it another shot and share it with them.
Update: I was wrong - our girls liked this book and we chuckled over the puns. They appreciated the fact that despite it was about the alphabet, it wasn't technically an alphabet book. And they were surprised at how much one missing letter (granted it's the most used letter in the alphabet) makes a big difference in how we communicate. Still it was just good, not great.
I thought it was entertaining, but I was a bit surprised by the rave reviews I saw here after I first posted my review. I liked it, but it wasn't laugh-out-loud funny. I doubted that our girls would really appreciate this book, though, so I just read this one on my own. But seeing that so many older kids liked this book, perhaps I'll give it another shot and share it with them.
Update: I was wrong - our girls liked this book and we chuckled over the puns. They appreciated the fact that despite it was about the alphabet, it wasn't technically an alphabet book. And they were surprised at how much one missing letter (granted it's the most used letter in the alphabet) makes a big difference in how we communicate. Still it was just good, not great.
February 21, 2012
It was the cleverness of the letter play found in Lichtenheld's pictures that did me in. E-Mergency is a cute story - when E gets hurt, O has to fill in for E until E recovers, and words all over the world are a mess. The punchline that E is can't recover completely because the narrator of the book keeps using it plays in nicely to the "what's a narrator" discussion. But the sly humor of all the letters doing their thing is what will get kids to want to read this book over and over. In the big alphabet house where all the letters live together, N and V wish they had a kite, too, D and C are reading comics, and P is using the bathroom. (hee hee!) O is the one who fills in for E since O is so well-rounded. P and U are told by an N holding its nose, "You two shouldn't sit together!" Lichtenheld even includes a tiny nod to William Steig's book "CDC", which kids should see after they've enjoyed this.
January 25, 2013
I've been waiting to give this to my niece. Now that shE's starting to rEad, I'm Excited it's timE. There's a reason I emphasized that well-used letter E - he is the bed-ridden letter throughout this book; consequently, the other letters of the alphabet have to figure out how to get along without him. How do they eventually mend him back to health?! That's the surprise ending!! This book has been as cleverly written as it is humorously illustrated. It's one of those books where children will probably find new sights on the page with each reading. It's wonderful for those beginning to read and become more familiar with alphabet sounds as well as those utilizing sight words and small sentences. Vowels vs. consonants, the frequency of letters and phonetic spelling all intertwine within the story. This makes for a fun read aloud with it's sing-song phrases that roll off the pages as they roll off the tongue. Enjoy - there's more here than meets the eye.
November 9, 2013
The tone of this book can be a little snarky, and the humor may be a little too offbeat for some, but ... I really enjoy the book. There are so many layers of humor, and I catch myself chuckling at something new every time!
My kids, now six, have loved it for over a year, and still ask for it often. They even make up stories about the letters, and what would happen if different letters of the alphabet fell out of commission! And I appreciate the clever nod to modern social cues as well as outstanding attention to detail in the combination of letters, from the house party on the opening page through all the steps to save E.
Once E is out of commission, it is a little tricky to pronounce several of the words and I sort of wish Y had stepped up to take E's place rather than the letter that did, but ... I suppose that would have made it all too easy!
Offbeat and quirky, and just my cup of tea to keep me entertained during storytime.
My kids, now six, have loved it for over a year, and still ask for it often. They even make up stories about the letters, and what would happen if different letters of the alphabet fell out of commission! And I appreciate the clever nod to modern social cues as well as outstanding attention to detail in the combination of letters, from the house party on the opening page through all the steps to save E.
Once E is out of commission, it is a little tricky to pronounce several of the words and I sort of wish Y had stepped up to take E's place rather than the letter that did, but ... I suppose that would have made it all too easy!
Offbeat and quirky, and just my cup of tea to keep me entertained during storytime.
July 10, 2012
This book is familiar to me, and I'm thinking I browsed through it when it came in on the new books cart. But I know I didn not thoroughly read it because I would have remembered all of the snippets of humor. This was hilarious. It took me over 20 minutes to read it because there was so much to see on each page, and reading without e's was difficult!
Would never work in a preschool storytime. Would be pretty funny in a school-age storytime--if I can get the reading of it down. But a group would very much miss all of the humor found in abundant though tiny details. The best for this would be a read-alone, followed by a lap-read. Some humor may even be over the heads of some school-age, but any adult reading the book--and taking the time to find the humor--will have a great time. I sure did!
I can't wait to meet the author--he must surpass brilliant hilariousness.
Would never work in a preschool storytime. Would be pretty funny in a school-age storytime--if I can get the reading of it down. But a group would very much miss all of the humor found in abundant though tiny details. The best for this would be a read-alone, followed by a lap-read. Some humor may even be over the heads of some school-age, but any adult reading the book--and taking the time to find the humor--will have a great time. I sure did!
I can't wait to meet the author--he must surpass brilliant hilariousness.
December 10, 2012
E-mergency! by Tom Lichtenheld follows the trials and tribulations of the alphabet after letter e is injured. Like Charlie's alphabet in the series by Audrey and Bruce Wood, the letters all live together. In such close quarters, an accident is sure to happen.
After a lot talking and a bit of panic, it's decided that letter o should stand in for e. So from then on, all the words that would normally go. It makes for a tongue twister of a read-aloud.
For fans of visual humor, the book is full of intricate illustrations. Every letter has a part to play and together they can be rather snarky.
The book was a hit with both of my children — one a kindergartner and the other a fourth grader.
After a lot talking and a bit of panic, it's decided that letter o should stand in for e. So from then on, all the words that would normally go. It makes for a tongue twister of a read-aloud.
For fans of visual humor, the book is full of intricate illustrations. Every letter has a part to play and together they can be rather snarky.
The book was a hit with both of my children — one a kindergartner and the other a fourth grader.
October 25, 2012
Summary: E falls down the stairs and can’t work anymore. Since E is out of commission, O has to fill in for him until he heals up and can work again. There are pictures at the beginning and end of the book that have the letters all living in a house together. If you look closely you’ll notice some silly things, like P sitting on the toilet. There is also a chart at the end that shows the frequency of letters in the English language and E is the most used, 12.702%
Audience: K-2
Appeal: It’s silly way to talk about the alphabet.
Implementation: I would use this book as a fun way to talk about the alphabet and the importance of letters.
Citation: Lichtenheld, T., & Meyer, E. (2011). E-mergency!. San Francisco, Calif.: Chronicle Books.
Audience: K-2
Appeal: It’s silly way to talk about the alphabet.
Implementation: I would use this book as a fun way to talk about the alphabet and the importance of letters.
Citation: Lichtenheld, T., & Meyer, E. (2011). E-mergency!. San Francisco, Calif.: Chronicle Books.
October 20, 2012
This book finds a clever way to exclude the letter "e" and it's importance. In the story, "E" falls down the stairs heading for breakfast, so while she's healing she's not able to be used in any words. Throughout the book the letter "O" fills in for her, making it a silly read. This book would be a good way to show humor while emphasizing the importance of the letter "e" in everyday language. I would use this book for students no older than 3rd grade. I think it's a good way to learn the alphabet, learn how important "e" is in our world, as well as learning puns and humor. In my classroom I would use this book just for the students to read, but if it in a first grade classroom I would use it as a spelling lesson. All in all, a well written, cute story.
October 27, 2012
Whatever you do, do not use the letter E!! This book is a hilariously witty book by Tom Lichtenheld. Apparently E is the most frequent letter used in the human vocabulary so what can we do? E is hurt and now O has to take over! Kids will love this book! The illustrations a just plum amazing and I guarantee I will have this book in my class. i think this book is for younger students just getting into letters, but the comedy in this book is so cute and older children will get a laugh out of it at least once. This would be a sweet book for a sub to use! It might sound weird but I am picturing students not taking a liking to subs that often so getting them into a really funny book and doing a lesson on the importance of "e" for example could be a super E-asy lesson!
June 3, 2016
Sometimes I don't realize how many phrases, expressions, and general acronyms we use in a day-to-day basis that are either represented by a single letter or can be spelled phonetically. This fun book cleverly uses these ideas as the reader is taken through a wild ride without the use of the letter "E".
While this book is fun and playful, what I find most intriguing the application to research. At the end of the book, there is a page that shows the frequency of all of the letters. Unsurprisingly, "E" is the most commonly used in the English language at 12.7%. Without explaining to students why "E" was chosen, This would be a great opportunity to discuss possible reasons for it's absence, and then to segue into a research unit
While this book is fun and playful, what I find most intriguing the application to research. At the end of the book, there is a page that shows the frequency of all of the letters. Unsurprisingly, "E" is the most commonly used in the English language at 12.7%. Without explaining to students why "E" was chosen, This would be a great opportunity to discuss possible reasons for it's absence, and then to segue into a research unit
February 12, 2012
This book probably deserves 4 stars for creativity, but when my son asked me to read it for a second time today, I asked him to please choose something else. It's a clever and funny story about an injured letter E...unfortunately this leads to O filling in everywhere E would normally be, and the read-aloud gets tricky. For oxamplo, a sontonco would road liko this, which takos quito a bit of timo to sound out and fools rathor ridiculous, and it's fairly long anyway. Fun for kids, cute puns in the illustrations, not one I want to read over and over again. I did enjoy the letter frequency chart at the end!
March 2, 2012
From the endpapers (cast/other cast and the letter E with a crutch and plaster) to the title page (with the comment "Look out for the authors!" and an ambulance headed straight for the credits...) readers will pore over the illustrations and chortle as they gargle the text.
The alphabet letters share a home. When E is hospitalized, O fills in for E anywhere the injured vowel would ordinarily appear.
Lots of puns and visual humor -- witty (as an 8-year-old). Fun.
Spoiler: On the second page of the text, "P" is shown in the bathroom, doing what you would expect that letter to do... Just sayin'...some library patron is bound to complain...
The alphabet letters share a home. When E is hospitalized, O fills in for E anywhere the injured vowel would ordinarily appear.
Lots of puns and visual humor -- witty (as an 8-year-old). Fun.
Spoiler: On the second page of the text, "P" is shown in the bathroom, doing what you would expect that letter to do... Just sayin'...some library patron is bound to complain...
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