Alpha

by Isabelle Arsenault

Discover the NATO phonetic alphabet—and find layers of connection in every letter—in a stunning abecedarian from celebrated artist Isabelle Arsenault.

Alpha, Bravo, Charlie . . . Since 1956, whenever time and clarity are of the essence, everyone from firefighters to air traffic controllers has spelled out messages using the NATO phonetic alphabet. Now, with equal precision—infused with a singular wit and whimsy—award-winning author-illustrator Isabelle Arsenault interprets this internationally recognized code and makes it her own. From the elegant Tangoto the enigmatic Echo, from the humorous Kilo to the haunting Romeo and Juliet, the striking art in this remarkable ABC book elicits laughter and curiosity, calls up endless associations, and will draw the viewer back again and again.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Kids, Fiction, Art

52 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Isabelle Arsenault is a French-Canadian artist and illustrator. Born in Sept-Iles, Quebec in 1978, she studied Graphic Design at the Université du Québec à Montréal (2001). After her studies, she quickly contributed to several magazines in Canada and the United-States. In 2004, Isabelle illustrated her first children's book, for which she received the prestigious Governor General's Award for children's literature in French (illustration). Her passion for illustrated books has led her more and more to continue pursuing this path. Since then, she was a finalist on two other occasions for the GG's ("My Letter to the World", "Migrant"), finalist for the Marilyn Baillie Award in 2011 ("Spork") and her book "Migrant" is among the 10 best illustrated books of 2011 according to The New York Times. In 2012, she received her second Governor General's Award for the illustrations of "Virginia Wolf" in addition to winning Le Prix jeunesse des libraires du Québec for "Fourchon" (French version of "Spork").

Isabelle, who enjoys working intuitively, adopts an approach to her work that is inspired by the projects she is given. Her style is infused with sensitivity and finesse. It attracts the attention of the young as much as that of older people, who can sometimes have a more in-depth understanding of it.

Isabelle Arsenault lives and works in Montreal.
___________________________________

Isabelle Arsenault est une illustratrice formée en Design graphique à l'Université du Québec à Montréal (2001). Elle collabore ensuite rapidement à plusieurs magazines au Canada et aux États-Unis. En 2004, elle illustre son premier livre pour enfants qui remportera l'année suivante le prestigieux Prix du Gouverneur général dans la catégorie illustration jeunesse de langue française ("Le coeur de Monsieur Gauguin"). Sa passion pour les livres illustrés la mènera à s'orienter davantage dans cette voie. Depuis, elle a été finaliste à deux reprises pour les Prix GG ("My letter to the world", "Migrant"), finaliste en 2011 pour le prix Marilyn Baillie ("Spork") et son livre "Migrant" se retrouve parmi la liste des 10 meilleurs livres illustrés de l'année 2011 du New York Times. En 2012, elle remporte son deuxième Prix Littéraire du Gouverneur Général pour les illustrations du livre "Virginia Wolf" ainsi que le Prix jeunesse des libraires du Québec pour "Fourchon".

Isabelle aime travailler de façon intuitive, s'inspirant des projets qu'on lui propose pour établir son approche graphique. Son style est empreint de sensibilité et de finesse. Il accroche autant le regard du jeune public que celui des plus âgés qui eux, pourront y percevoir parfois un deuxième niveau de lecture.

Isabelle Arsenault travaille et vit à Montréal.

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here’s a review that has images of this book so you can see some of it:

http://www.threebooksanight.com/book-...

Isn’t that beautiful?!

I read this because I am reading everything the talented Isabelle Arsenault is doing. And was not particularly looking forward to this because I saw it was an abecedarian book, and we know what THOSE are like: A is for apple, and then you see a crisp red apple, and then ball, and so on. But no! This is a book that introduces us to the NATO phonetic alphabet I didn’t know until now I was even interested in, let along aware of!

I am borrowing this from Rand, whose review of this book I just read before posting, so you can see it:

http://www.alphabravocharlie.info/alp...

Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, since 1956, firefighters, air traffic controllers, others, use the NATO phonetic alphabet. Arsenault takes that alphabet and introduces us to words and illustrations that are original and beautiful and whimsical and interesting.

“Charlie” shows Charlie Chaplin’s bowler; “Mike” shows a pair of boxing gloves. Some are less subtle, but still good: A couple dancing the “Foxtrot,” a glass of “Whiskey.” Not just for kids, no! I like the Monopoly game piece for “Hotel” and the wallet featuring the baby picture for “Papa.”

This is one smart and witty book. Love it.

[Hilary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Isabelle Arsenault's illustrations are wonderful, she is probably my favourite living illustrator and there are some wonderful examples here. Given that she was illustrating the NATO phonetic alphabet, she did a great job as some of the words just aren't ones you can make an interesting illustration from. I don't know how fun this would be for a small child to look through and there was nothing particularly interesting in the fact page at the end.

[Rand · Rating 5 out of 5]

A letter book based upon the radio code developed in the 1920s for air traffic controllers. Each word is accompanied by a conceptually related image that will provoke the natural curiosity of a young mind. While some of the word-image relations may veer more to the "adult" side (eg Romeo features a dagger and Juliet a bottle of poison) many are more whimsical/neutral; though none of the image-word relations are any more terrifying than the sort of stuff to be found in feature films that are marketed to children.

Arsenault is a truly talented illustrator who uses crisp, clean lines with a keen sense of color. A worthy addition to any classroom's library or children's room.

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh boy! Did this book bring back memories! Trying to say A-Z in front of my favorite drill sergeant during end of cycle training in boot camp!

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

French-Canadian illustrator and picture-book author Isabelle Arsenault presents the NATO phonetic alphabet - officially known as the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet, it was adopted in the 1950s to aid clarity in voice messages and communication - in this beautifully-illustrated picture-book. Each two-page spread of this unusual alphabet book features the designated word for that page's letter - Alpha for A, Foxtrot for F - on the left-hand side, and an illustration of the word in question on the right.

Although I often have mixed reactions to alphabet books - they tend to bore me, unless they do something unusual - I picked up Alpha with some anticipation, as I am a great admirer of Isabelle Arsenault's artwork. I appreciated the fact that this is not simply an alphabet book, but a specific kind of alphabet book, one devoted to the NATO phonetic alphabet that one so frequently hears being used in military movies and television shows. I thought that this was an unusual approach to the form. The illustrations were lovely, and I thought some of the illustration ideas - boxing gloves for M/Mike, a clear reference to Mike Tyson - were quite creative. Visually, I particularly liked those pages (J for Juliet, R for Romeo) on which an item was depicted (a bottle, a knife), with a shadowy human figure contained within. Recommended to fellow Arsenault fans, and to anyone looking for unusual picture-books.

[Karin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating alphabet book that gives takes you through the words of the NATO phonetic alphabet. So, for one thing it was very informative because I didn't know some of the letters, like I didn't know that Q was Quebec and I had forgotten that G stood for Golf. But, the best thing about this book are the illustrations. Arsenault chooses some great things to represent each letter. Things that will generate a discussion about their connection to the word. For example, J for Juliet has an illustration of a small glass bottle with cork stopper. A girl's face is reflected in the glass of the bottle. O for Oscar has a picture of a woman wearing a beautiful gown. So clever!

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lima-Oscar-Victor-Echo-Delta India-Tango!!!!

[Mary Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

While this is a cool concept, I really am struggling about the right audience for this book. Take for example the R-Romeo page. While this is one of the letters that really sticks in my mind as the "official" tag for the letter R, I don't there that there are enough clues here for a young child (PreK - K - 1st) to understand what the illustration means. So then would an older child be drawn to this book? I'm just not sure.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 * for the art work

[Brittanny Handiboe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlie, alpha, tango. These three words may seem randomly thrown together but in the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet, “Charlie-Alpha-Tango” spells “cat”. Emergency services including the police, firefighters, the military, and the Red Cross use this alphabet as a way to communicate clearly. Arsenault’s concept and fantastic illustrations make this alphabet book an unique learning experience for the ABC learner and anyone who may not know the NATO phonetic alphabet. Because of the engaging concept and illustrations meant to inspire different interpretations of each object representing each word in the alphabet, furthering Arsenault’s idea of communication between the reader and listener, a parent may be just looking for a standard ABC book and might pass this particular one by. Despite that, Arsenault’s work is great for any child between ages 5 to 8 and makes a good addition to a picture book enthusiasts’ library and is also recommended for anyone who also wants to learn the NATO phonetic alphabet.

I LOVE the illustrations and am happy to have this book in my picture book enthusiast library haha.

[Allie]

Beautiful illustration from Isabelle Arsenault. I'm totally obsessed with her. I like the concept of introducing kids to the phonetic alphabet, and with having kind of oblique illustrations of those words. But it was also a little confusing. Particularly Alpha, which unfortunately/obviously starts the alphabet off. I'm still not positive I got that one.

[Katie Melbourne · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a child of Navy parents this book has particular appeal for me. Such a creative way of teaching the phonetic alphabet. Inspired me to write this review for Babyology which in turn gained a lot of interest: http://babyology.com.au/sunday-arts/a...

[Michael Earp · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is beautiful!
And if you haven't read 'Jane, The Fox and Me', also illustrated by Isabelle, then do yourself a favour and remedy that immediately!

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A witty, strikingly illustrated abecedarian introducing the NATO phonetic alphabet.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, this book fails because it shows a lima bean for L (lima). The bean is pronounced differently (lye-ma) from the NATO code word (lee-ma). Why did no one catch this?

[Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's interesting...maybe more appropriate for an older crowd.

[Mia · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a children's book this gets a star. As a book to disassemble and use at wall art for adults, 5 stars.

[Bookrapt (Est. 1983) · Rating 3 out of 5]

A unique alphabet book imbued with style and sophistication. This is not an ordinary A,B,C, picture book. Instead, it introduces the internationally recognised NATO code used by air traffic control and emergency services worldwide.

Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, etc. display the 26 words that are universally used to represent the phonetic International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet. To avoid misunderstandings in communication, the letters are said and spelled as words.

For example, the town of Waihi would be said as: Whiskey, Alpha, India, Hotel, India. Although ‘Alpha’ can also be written as ‘Alfa’ the word still sounds the same and, regardless of spelling, the word clearly signifies the letter A.

Many of the illustrations display a quirky sense of humour. For instance, the word ‘Charlie’ is accompanied by a black bowler hat similar to one worn by the silent movie star, Charlie Chaplin. ‘Delta’ shows a paper plane in the triangular Delta wing shape, ‘Kilo’ pictures a generous slice of chocolate cake, while ‘Mike’is illustrated with a pair of red boxing gloves, perhaps indicating the boxer, Mike Tyson? ‘Juliet’ and ‘Romeo’ are brilliant.

The artist obviously enjoyed making visual connections with the words. Unfortunately, the image for ‘Delta’ is shown on the cover under the title ‘Alpha’ - which rather confuses the message.

Published with quality paper and a hardback cover, this book warrants being left out on a table to be discovered and shared by readers of all ages.

Reviewed by Jean Bennett (Bookrapt)

[Lynne Marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

While certainly a unique approach to an alphabet book, when trying to look at this book through the eyes of a child I did not get what a child would find appealing or engaging about the illustrations. I also do not believe this alphabet has words that speak to little ones or promote re-readability or foster necessary learning. While I do think that perhaps it might have a sales market to tap into via appealing to military or police parents and other parents that use this type of alphabet, I think the reason for writing children's books (to engage and foster the imaginations of children) might be getting lost -- see the Romeo spread with a sharp dagger and the reflection of Romeo in it. YIKES! And whiskey! Really?

[Dierdre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book. Lovely illustrations. I liked how the first letter of each word was highlighted, since it is an alphabet book. The younger crowd won't understand some of the meaning behind certain illustrations and I'm not sure I'm ready to explain Romeo and Juliet to my four year old. Nevertheless, a young child can still enjoy the book.

[Kit Feral · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was super neat. My children did not haha. They aren't quite old enough to understand the explanation and every page I read was met with an indignant "that's not what that is!!" Maybe more for 5+ (or parents - we both really enjoyed it)

[Lynn Schlatter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unshelved review here: http://www.unshelved.com/bookclub/201...

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would be an excellent ABC book for an older child...or a child interested in the military alphabet.

[Lisa]

I love Arsenault's illustrations in other books, and this work gets points for using unusual visuals to illustrate this alphabet, but overall I was disappointed compared to her other works.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clever and fun.

[Mumbler · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's some beautiful stuff in here. I think lots of adults I know would enjoy the beauty of the illustrations, and the wit in some of the connections she makes. I aim to test that out. :) I'm putting this behind a spoiler, because I was amazed with surprise, at my favorite pages, that I mention below.

I don't know what it would be like for kids; definitely a 'thinker', since a few are likely to cause some head-scratching. And certainly intended that way. Others seem simpler, though maybe I haven't caught on to everything!

I did not recall that the NATO alphabet contained both "Juliet" and "Romeo". Those illustrations are my absolute favorites. I'm bit mad for her work, and even I didn't think I was gonna get anything that deep and beautiful from an alphabet book. They are quietly haunting.

And again, those could be strange for kids, I think? I don't want to underestimate kids, but portraits of two sweet young faces, with the means of their deaths, seem pretty heavy material! But that really has nothing to do with me; that's an attempt to review the book for others. I'm just in love with those pages.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

An alphabet book that introduces the NATO phonetic alphabet, aka the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet. (Wow, is that a mouthful!) Each spread is the one word used to clarify a letter and an illustration to go with the word.

Some of the illustrations chosen made me scratch my head a little. I would have illustrated echo and victor rather differently. Each illustration does have the benefit of being very simple. Just one object for each word. The primary interest catcher for this book is the introduction of the alphabet of words used over radios and such. I don't know if I've ever heard all of these before. Interesting, but I'd like some of the illustrations to be better.

[Sandy Brehl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another title that is as much non-ficton as fiction, although the illustrations for each international-call-word for the alphabet could elicit countless imagined tales.
Regardless of categorization, it is a wonderful way to work with the alphabet across ages, interests, and for comparative purposes. I love the trim size. It reminds be of the cubes used in alphabet block sets.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very cute book with the NATO alphabet. Some of the letters are particularly enjoyable, like Juliet, which is illustrated with a bottle of poison. I particularly enjoyed this book.

Recommended for ages 3-5.

[Carrie Charley Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shares the NATO phonetic alphabet and an accompanying illustration for each letter.