AlphaOops!: H Is for Halloween

AlphaOops!

by Alethea Kontis, Bob Kolar (Illustrator)

H gets top billing — but a stubborn B has something scary to say — as the inside-out alphabet gives a howl-arious Halloween performance.

Ack! It’s time for the show, and A isn’t ready. But then again, Halloween can only start with one letter, no matter how the A-B-Cs normally go! The misbehaving alphabet is back, and there’s no telling who will take the stage next. Z for zombie? P for pirate? Will X think of something good in time? Neon-bright, comically detailed illustrations show a cacophony of costumed letters, each with a mind and personality all its own. Along the bottom, tiny pumpkins arrange the players in proper order, making this alphabet story letter-perfect for Halloween.

Genres: Halloween, Picture Books, Childrens, Holiday, Fiction, Storytime, Humor

34 pages, Hardcover

First published July 13, 2010

About the author

"A veritable badass fairy princess." --Jim Butcher

"The faerie princess of the worlds of weird." --Jonathan Maberry

"Alethea Kontis IS fairy tales." --Jim C. Hines, author of Libriomancer

"Alethea Kontis: Awesome, racks up award nominations, wears tiaras." --SF author Ferrett Steinmetz

"I want to live in [Alethea's] head because I think that might be the most interesting place in the world!!!!" --Ellen Oh, author of Prophecy

"Alethea Kontis, the woman who writes like Shakespeare would if he were alive today." --Aaron Pound

"The beauty of a princess, the confidence of a queen, the brilliance of a writer, and the demeanor of a cheerful fairy comedian!" --Cheyenne Z.

"This was the story before all of the other stories, and it was the other tales that were changed over time." --Nerdophiles, on ENCHANTED

Reviews

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

The mixed up alphabet antics continue in this second Alpha Oops book. A isn’t ready to go on, but H has to start a Halloween book anyway. H starts with Halloween, and the other letters join in for a Halloween-themed alphabet that is not in any particular order. As the letters reveal themselves, poor B keeps on trying to get his word in but is upstaged each time. He tries to be a buccaneer, but P is wearing the same costume for pirate. X has trouble finding the perfect word too, but S is there with a great idea. Keep an eye on the bottom of the page as the alphabet fills in with pumpkins bearing the letters that are in alphabetical order. You will just have to wait until the end of the book to find out what B has in store for you!

This book is filled with laughs thanks to the underlying story of the letters putting on a show. The asides from the different letters are very funny, offering a deeper story to this book than just the alphabet and letters. It turns this book into one that children too old for regular alphabet books will really enjoy.

Kolar’s illustrations are filled with great deep colors from an eerie yellowy green to vibrant reds to glowing orange. The book fairly pops with color and action. Make sure to take the time to look at the illustrations because he has filled them with critters, candy and plenty of additional laughs.

A bright, funny alphabet book that is a perfect Halloween treat. No trick. Appropriate for ages 3-6.

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

HALLOWEEN IS ALMOST HERE! Now if only all the letters can come up with a plant to spell it out!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Instant LOVE! This book is wonderful for R2R use. Great illustrations, engaging storyline (a Halloween pageant!), excellent for vocabulary and letter knowledge (the letters appear out of order in the "pageant," but line up nicely along the bottom of the page as each one "takes their turn.") I will definitely be using this one for my own children come Halloweeen time! p.s. *love* the hint to a third book at the end...

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

The letters are going to put on a spectacular Halloween show if they can ever get their act(s) together.
Great illustrations by Bob Kolar.

[Monster]

In this Halloween themed AlphaOops story, the mixed up alphabet is getting ready to celebrate Halloween in traditional AlphaOops style. When the letter A isn't ready to start the Halloween alphabet, the letter H gets top billing. The other letters appear throughout the book representing different creatures and items of Halloween. Kontis includes some alphabet book in-jokes, as when the letter J apologizes to the jack-o-lantern for picking another word, saying "J can't always be for jack-o-lantern". Q, always a hard letter to get creative with, successfully breaks the mold, and S and X come up with an imaginative pairing. Unfortunately for the letter B, booted from his early place in the alphabet, other letters keep stealing his costume ideas. The letter P is a pirate, with the same costume as B's buccaneer; Y's yeti is identical to B's Bigfoot. Readers will cheer (and jump) when B finally gets the last word! The illustrations are fantastic and fun, and the kids will giggle at Bob Kolar’s art and Alethea Kontis’s story. AlphaOops goes a step beyond the typical letter representing a word in that the letters themselves have been given some personality. AlphaOops: H is for Halloween has catapulted itself up to a must have for any school library or public library’s children’s section and would make a great addition to any display. It is a wonderful read for kids who have become acquainted with the alphabet and is engaging enough that parents will enjoy sharing it with their kids. Once Halloween has passed, children and adults who love this book will want to check out the first book in the series, AlphaOops: The Day Z Went First

[Julie Darling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story, great illustrations, the words are kind of all over the place and it does not follow any alphabetical order (although the letters use words that start with their letter). Some banter between the letters makes it entertaining for adults as well. Reading it to a child requires a fair amount of pointing to direct attention to where it's supposed to go. Still, very worthwhile. Good Halloween seasonal read for one on one, maybe not so great for a read aloud.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a nice blend of alphabet and holiday. Thinking that some subtleties may be missed in a group environment but this went over well as a reading to a solo child. Clever and funny, we both enjoyed it.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute book for kids and incorporates Halloween words for each of the letters.

[Jade Saleem · Rating 3 out of 5]

This a great read aloud for pre k, kindergarten, or first grade students. This book is in reference to halloween. Great read aloud to read in the month of October.

[Mama Bibliosoph · Rating 5 out of 5]

I reviewed Alpha Oops! The Day Z Went First, in my roundup earlier this year of books about the alphabet. I like this sequel even better. Once again, all the letters are about to put on a show, but A isn't ready. This time, H is called in and gets things started with "H is for Halloween."

The letters all eventually take the stage dressed up as Halloween themed words, like "Z is for Zombie" and "S is for Skeleton." There are some cute running gags too. The letter B keeps getting its ideas stolen (like when it tries to dress up as a Buccaneer but P dresses up like a Pirate). But B finally has an original idea and ends the book with "BOO!"

Part of the shtick of the AlphaOops books is that the alphabet is all out of order. If you have an alphabet lover with a scripting problem, this is a great way to break that habit and help your child tolerate (and enjoy) the alphabet as a collection of useful building blocks and not just a strict, ordered chain.

But for a child who has some anxiety about this disorganization, or is too confused about this gimmick, there is a long row across the bottom of each spread where the letters that have already appeared are listed in the traditional order.

---
I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is part of a longer post about great picture books to read around Halloween: http://www.lineupthebooks.com/hallowe...

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

The unruly alphabet which appeared in author Alethea Kontis and illustrator Bob Kolar's AlphaOops!: The Day Z Went First return in this second picture book romp, this time celebrating Halloween. Halloween begins with H, who (rather than A) must open the show, followed by the various other letters of the alphabet who appear on stage, each representing something spooky—V for Vampire, R for Raven, and so on. Eventually B, sulking because P stole his idea—P for Pirate, rather than B for Buccaneer—even gets in on the act, ending the book with a great big BOO!...

I was not aware of the earlier book featuring these letter characters when I found AlphaOops: H Is for Halloween on my public library's Halloween display last week. I simply thought the cover looked fun, with its vibrant color palette and quirky characters, and picked it up on impulse. On the whole, I think it lived up to that impression, with an entertainingly chaotic story, and appealing artwork that accentuated the sense of humor. I'm not sure how effective a tool this would be for starting to learn the alphabet, as all of the letters are out of order, and there's a lot going on visually, but I think it can reinforce letter recognition, in a fun, seasonal way.

[Alyssa Baxter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. The alphabet is presenting their Halloween costumes. Unlike many alphabet concept books, this book presents the letters out of order, which could confuse some kids. This book gives various personalities to the letters. The letters’ dialogue will have you laughing and smiling. I did not realize that it was possible to feel bad for a letter before reading this book (sorry B!). The illustrations are super colorful and full of movement, which will keep children's attention. The illustrations show the letters doing things that humans would do. This book would be great to help teach children how to associate letters to words and phonics. The word choice is simple, except for one and thankfully the letters defined it for me in a hilarious way. I think lower elementary school children would enjoy this bright and colorful book. Overall, this book is super cute and funny. I want to buy books from this series for my classroom.

[Edna Velasquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awards: None
Grade Level: Pre-k- 1st
Summary: This book presents the alphabet as a cast of characters who are ready to put on the Halloween show. It is associated to certain Halloween words that begin with H. Every page has different letters and it contains a difference scene.
Review: The illustrations in this book was well drawn. I like this book because children are able to identify the letter and learn about new words connected to themes.
In class uses:1. Used to practice the alphabet.
2. Children can come up with a letter they like the most and come up with a scene.
3. Have children draw something about Halloween starting with the letter H.

[Avery A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Picture book - Alphabet
Awards: none
Audience: ages 3-6
A. AlphaOops is a 32-page book with illustrations of each letter of the alphabet.
B. Bob Kolar uses appropriate and effective colors to convey a Halloween theme. Mostly dark colors are used in the backgrounds and bolder colors are used for the letters so that they stand out on the pages.
C. I would use this book with a group of preschoolers to build letter knowledge and vocabulary, specifically in the Fall or the month of October as Halloween approaches.
D. What did the 'B' stand for? Boo!

[Kendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read this book around Halloween last year. I love finding different alphabet books that don't use the same words such as A is for apple. This book is so much fun as it has Halloween theme words for each letter of the alphabet. Cassie giggled at the silly antics of each letter of the alphabet. The illustrations in this book are bright and cheerful which keeps the youngest of readers attention. This book is really easy to read aloud and I had no trouble with tongue ties or anything that sometimes happens with alphabet books. I recommend checking this out for Halloween.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read. You get a jumbled up alphabet where all the letters are things relating to Halloween. (Of course.) I do like that A tells everyone that H should go first because it’s a Halloween book. Also - Poor B!

[Jeremy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay.

[Betsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful drawings! Clever way to check on alphabet recognition.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute and kids love funny stories.

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how "B" keeps getting pushed off to the side until the very end. This would be a hard book to understand if kids weren't familiar with their letters yet, though.

[Laura Aldridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute super clever take on an alphabet book. There’s also a lot to see without being overwhelming so kids will get a great read and a fun time to look for things!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this fun book. Our son knew it by heart.

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the cutest alphabet books I’ve ever read.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little scarier than it needed to be.

[Beth Voecks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious!!

[kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

not amazing, not horrible

[Kaitlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun holiday book with the alphabet. Creative and fun illustrations.

[Miriah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable

[Alyson Howlett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute, fun, educational, and festive.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 3 year old loves this book. He thinks it's so fun to yell "Boo!" when it's B's turn. He's also a big Halloween fan in general so he likes the spooky aesthetic.