Alphabeasts

by Dick King-Smith, Quentin Blake (Illustrator)

An entertaining assortment of animals of all shapes and sizes--from the anaconda to the zambra--populates a zany bestiary filled with a collection of witty poetry. All ages.

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry

58 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1990

About the author

Dick King-Smith was born and raised in Gloucestershire, England, surrounded by pet animals. After twenty years as a farmer, he turned to teaching and then to writing children's books.

Dick writes mostly about animals: farmyard fantasy, as he likes to call it, often about pigs, his special favorites. He enjoys writing for children, meeting the children who read his books, and knowing that they get enjoyment from what he does.

Among his well-loved books is Babe, The Gallant Pig, which was recently made into a major motion picture, and was nominated for an Academy Award.

Dick lived with his wife in a small 17th-century cottage, about three miles from the house where he was born.

Reviews

[Alison]

I did not particularly care for this book. It had decent illustrations but some I felt were not child appropriate. I would not use this book in my classroom for I don't know what I could use it for. It was very imaginative though.

[Cheryl]

Wonderful fun for the right audience. I liked the unusual beasts and the vocabulary words. "Decorticating porcupines" and "Oribi from Abyssinia" especially. And I liked the anti-extinction theme.

I give it only three stars for my own personal enjoyment. Also, I read it on openlibrary, so probably it's better in print.

[Heather]

British humor, a little crass at times.

[Robin]

Amusing collection of poems featuring an animal for each letter of the alphabet. Both the choice of animals and vocabulary in the poems tend to be quirky, making this a delightful read for those with a penchant for the unusual.

[Randie D. Camp, M.S.]

Dick King-Smith's humorous poems about 26 beasts are whimsically illustrated by the funny and slightly quirky creations of Quentin Blake.

[Marilyn]

Strange story for children. Alissa didn't care for it.