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The Z Was Zapped: A Play in Twenty-Six Acts – The Three-Time Caldecott Medalist's Mysterious Alphabet Picture Book
A dramatic black-and-white presentation of the alphabet in which the three-time Caldecott medalist depicts a mysterious transformation of each letter.
56 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
11 people are currently reading
847 people want to read
About the author
Chris Van Allsburg
58 books1,134 followersChris was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on June 18, 1949, the second child of Doris Christiansen Van Allsburg and Richard Van Allsburg. His sister Karen was born in 1947.
Chris’s paternal grandfather, Peter, owned and operated a creamery, a place where milk was turned into butter, cream, cottage cheese, and ice cream. It was named East End Creamery and after they bottled the milk (and made the other products) they delivered it to homes all around Grand Rapids in yellow and blue trucks.
When Chris was born, his family lived in an old farm house next door to the large brick creamery building. It was a very old house that, like the little house in Virginia Lee Burton’s story, had once looked over farmland. But by 1949, the house was surrounded by buildings and other houses. Chris’s father ran the dairy with Chris’s three uncles after his grandfather Peter retired.
When Chris was three years old, his family moved to a new house at the edge of Grand Rapids that was part of a development; a kind of planned neighborhood, that was still being built.
There remained many open fields and streams and ponds where a boy could catch minnows and frogs, or see a firefly at night. It was about a mile and a half to Breton Downs School, which Chris walked to every day and attended until 6th grade, when the Van Allsburg family moved again.
The next house they lived in was an old brick Tudor Style house in East Grand Rapids. It was a street that looked like the street on the cover of The Polar Express. The houses were all set back the same distance from the street. Between the street and the sidewalk grew enormous Elm trees whose branches reached up and touched the branches of the trees on the other side of the street. Chris moved to this street with his mom, dad, sister, and two Siamese cats. One named Fafner and the other name Eloise.
Chris went to junior and senior high school in East Grand Rapids. He didn’t take art classes during this time. His interests and talents seemed to be more in the area of math and science.
Chris’s paternal grandfather, Peter, owned and operated a creamery, a place where milk was turned into butter, cream, cottage cheese, and ice cream. It was named East End Creamery and after they bottled the milk (and made the other products) they delivered it to homes all around Grand Rapids in yellow and blue trucks.
When Chris was born, his family lived in an old farm house next door to the large brick creamery building. It was a very old house that, like the little house in Virginia Lee Burton’s story, had once looked over farmland. But by 1949, the house was surrounded by buildings and other houses. Chris’s father ran the dairy with Chris’s three uncles after his grandfather Peter retired.
When Chris was three years old, his family moved to a new house at the edge of Grand Rapids that was part of a development; a kind of planned neighborhood, that was still being built.
There remained many open fields and streams and ponds where a boy could catch minnows and frogs, or see a firefly at night. It was about a mile and a half to Breton Downs School, which Chris walked to every day and attended until 6th grade, when the Van Allsburg family moved again.
The next house they lived in was an old brick Tudor Style house in East Grand Rapids. It was a street that looked like the street on the cover of The Polar Express. The houses were all set back the same distance from the street. Between the street and the sidewalk grew enormous Elm trees whose branches reached up and touched the branches of the trees on the other side of the street. Chris moved to this street with his mom, dad, sister, and two Siamese cats. One named Fafner and the other name Eloise.
Chris went to junior and senior high school in East Grand Rapids. He didn’t take art classes during this time. His interests and talents seemed to be more in the area of math and science.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 278 reviews
September 14, 2019
An alphabet book set up like a stage with 26 acts. It shows something happening to the letter and it’s interesting to figure out what he’s getting at. I’ll admit I couldn’t figure out what was happening to G at first. You turn the page to find out and see the next one. Most are fairly obvious, but it’s still fun. I liked that C was being curled. As far as these kind of things go, this one was interesting.
The pictures are all black and white.
The niece did not read this with us. The nephew thought this was fun. He is still working on words and what they start with, but his reading skills are improving quickly. He thought A had rocks thrown at it instead of avalanche. He had fun with this and he gave this 4 stars.
The pictures are all black and white.
The niece did not read this with us. The nephew thought this was fun. He is still working on words and what they start with, but his reading skills are improving quickly. He thought A had rocks thrown at it instead of avalanche. He had fun with this and he gave this 4 stars.
March 21, 2018
Although I do indeed and even academically manage to appreciate and somewhat enjoy Chris Van Allsburg's The Z Was Zapped, I also find it more than a trifle (if not even majorly) confusing and potentially distracting that the letters are not on the same pages as the words describing them (and I probably would have found this even more of a probable issue as a child). I keep having to flip back and forth, which does become a bit of a tedium, and actually (at least for me) ends up being both frustrating and very much annoying. And while author/illustrator Chris Van Allburg's alliterative text definitely tickles my poetic fancy (and I actually find the general sense of morbidity, the fact that the alphabet letters are often in seeming danger, in seeming peril, rather amusing), the black and white illustrations of the letters and what happens or is done to them are really and truly not particularly to my taste (are actually not at all to my taste if I am to be brutally honest). Even with letters being kidnapped and zapped, the depictions of these occurrences seem mundane and monotonous, or perhaps more to the point, I myself tend to find the lack of colour somewhat frustratingly mundane and monotonous. However, this is often (if not usually) the case for me with Chris Van Allsburg's artwork (namely that while I always can appreciate his illustrations, I can also never truly love them). Still, The Z Was Zapped is to be recommended as an interesting and novel alphabet book for children (and their parents) who want, who might desire something a bit different from the general status quo, my own issues, my own not so glowing and pretty blah reaction to The Z Was Zapped notwithstanding (however, from a personal reading pleasure point of view, The Z Was Zapped is but a high two star book for me).
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February 17, 2021[Book #20 for my grad school Children's Lit class]
June 17, 2013
This was an excellent book, made especially so by the illustrations. Great for all ages, it has something even the adults will love. The pictures are kind of goth and creepy which kept me interested, and my preschoolers loved guessing which letter the picture showed. My 5 yr old who is in first grade loved trying to guess what verb that began with that letter, was happening to the letter before I turned the page. Overall a great education and fun read for all.
December 15, 2015
Ehhhh. I really enjoy Chris Van Allsburg's stuff. He's a wonderful illustrator and a very good children's author. But this one just didn't do it for me. It was just a picture of a letter on stage and something was happening to the letter, and the next page would say what happened (example: the A was in an avalanche; the Z was zapped). It includes all the letters in the English alphabet. But I just didn't really enjoy it. Maybe this one is more enjoyable for children.
October 21, 2008
Synopsis
: Something is a foot within the Alphabet Theater! A dramatic portrayal in twenty-six acts, with moments both poignant and painful. This production is sure to capture the attention of all who experience it. With strong associations between words and letters. Could this be an alphabet book in disguise?
Review : Presented in classic theater style, Chris Van Allsburg creates a world of familiar ABC characters that are going through some tough, frightening times. The "A" is being over run by an avalanche, the "F" was firmly flattened, which of course made the "J" jittery, while the "V" completely vanished from the scene. Can you blame them? With all of the unusual, mysterious excitement going on within this production, I'm certain that the house will sell out weeks in advance. Of course, that is assuming that the kidnapped "K" will return and the "M" will stop melting. The illustrations are marvelous--you could say simple graphite and paper but, there is nothing simple about them. Chris Van Allsburg is a magician. I loved this book! I love all of his books.
Critical Reviews :Karen K. Radtke from S.L.J. says, "this is more an alphabet book for older children, who will enjoy guessing what heinous act is being foisted upon these noble letters. Which is a good point. Publishers Weekly gave a lukewarm review, "While Van Allsburg's visual ingenuity is in full evidence (among his hauntingly realistic images are the evaporating E and the jittery J), there is both a sinister quality and an stagey dimension to the work. Artistically, a virtuoso performance, but one with an undeniably cold cast." Which might be true but, still a great book!
Review : Presented in classic theater style, Chris Van Allsburg creates a world of familiar ABC characters that are going through some tough, frightening times. The "A" is being over run by an avalanche, the "F" was firmly flattened, which of course made the "J" jittery, while the "V" completely vanished from the scene. Can you blame them? With all of the unusual, mysterious excitement going on within this production, I'm certain that the house will sell out weeks in advance. Of course, that is assuming that the kidnapped "K" will return and the "M" will stop melting. The illustrations are marvelous--you could say simple graphite and paper but, there is nothing simple about them. Chris Van Allsburg is a magician. I loved this book! I love all of his books.
Critical Reviews :Karen K. Radtke from S.L.J. says, "this is more an alphabet book for older children, who will enjoy guessing what heinous act is being foisted upon these noble letters. Which is a good point. Publishers Weekly gave a lukewarm review, "While Van Allsburg's visual ingenuity is in full evidence (among his hauntingly realistic images are the evaporating E and the jittery J), there is both a sinister quality and an stagey dimension to the work. Artistically, a virtuoso performance, but one with an undeniably cold cast." Which might be true but, still a great book!
April 11, 2010
The Z was Zapped” is another surreal book from the creative mind of Chris Van Allsburg, the well-known author of “Jumanji.” In this book, the Alphabet Theatre introduces a play where all twenty-six letters of the alphabet are somehow involved in some kind of unfortunate mishap. “The Z was Zapped” will surely be an instant treat for children who want to learn the alphabet in a more creative way.
Chris Van Allsburg has done a magnificent job on both the writing and the illustrations in this book. Chris Van Allsburg makes the story dramatic and exciting at the same time as each letter goes through some kind of disaster that they have no control over. Chris Van Allsburg’s illustrations are beautiful and realistic as each letter is vividly shown being cut up or melted in some way. The illustration that really stood out the most was the illustration of a large snout of a dog hovering over the letter B as the text depicts that B was bitten. I also love the way that Chris Van Allsburg makes this book seem like it came out of an old movie since the images are in black and white and it also gives the readers a sense of dramatic tension throughout this book.
“The Z was Zapped” is a beautiful and dramatic book for children who love drama and who want an exciting way to learn about the alphabet. I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since it may be too intense for smaller children to handle since it deals with the theme of violence.
From my Epinions Review:
http://www.epinions.com/review/The_Al...
Chris Van Allsburg has done a magnificent job on both the writing and the illustrations in this book. Chris Van Allsburg makes the story dramatic and exciting at the same time as each letter goes through some kind of disaster that they have no control over. Chris Van Allsburg’s illustrations are beautiful and realistic as each letter is vividly shown being cut up or melted in some way. The illustration that really stood out the most was the illustration of a large snout of a dog hovering over the letter B as the text depicts that B was bitten. I also love the way that Chris Van Allsburg makes this book seem like it came out of an old movie since the images are in black and white and it also gives the readers a sense of dramatic tension throughout this book.
“The Z was Zapped” is a beautiful and dramatic book for children who love drama and who want an exciting way to learn about the alphabet. I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since it may be too intense for smaller children to handle since it deals with the theme of violence.
From my Epinions Review:
http://www.epinions.com/review/The_Al...
February 7, 2012
At first glance, it is easy to see that this book was made in a portrait format. I believe this is because the book is acting as if you are watching a stage performance; therefore, each illustration acts as the actor and calls for a portrait style view. Another interesting aspect of the book is that all of the illustrations are in black and white. I believe this was done to create a more serious mood for the reader as well as express a certain level of creepiness and darkness. The font is also very formal, again, to re-enforce the feeling of seriousness. Another way in which this book stood out particularly was how at first, it seems to be a mere alphabet book. But, after reading the book more closely, the intention becomes a little more unclear. The way in which Chris Van Allsburg associates each letter of the alphabet with a word containing a negative connotation, for example, "The K was quietly Kidnapped", begs the question why. I personally think it was to tell a story of sadness, pain, and seriousness, instead of simply putting a dark twist on a common alphabet book. Lastly, the page before the end-page of the book is red, whereas the end-pages are white. I believe this is to signify the dropping of the red curtain at the end of a play, since the book was set up as a drama performance.
May 5, 2014
Many years ago (1988), I was a mother of a toddlers and was knee-deep in primary colors, silly jingles, and diapers (nice visual, huh?). The tots and I were frequent visitors to our public library which was only a short walk from our home. We left laden with bags of books each time. In fact, our library instituted a check-out limit (25 books per card) because of our family, but that only meant that we had to visit every other day instead of every third or fourth.
Anyhoo, out of all of the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of young children's books I read to our children, I remember this one fondly because it had graphic black-and-white illustrations and wasn't the typical fuzzy-bunny read. It was a bit ominous. The A was in an avalanche, the B was badly bitten, the C was cut to ribbons, etc. I loved it. However, the children informed me the book was scary, and my son requested that I never read it again!
I couldn't resist picking up a copy when I ran across it recently. Someday, I'll have grandchildren (hopefully), and I'll get to share The Z was Zapped with a new generation when they are ready to be frightened a bit.
Anyhoo, out of all of the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of young children's books I read to our children, I remember this one fondly because it had graphic black-and-white illustrations and wasn't the typical fuzzy-bunny read. It was a bit ominous. The A was in an avalanche, the B was badly bitten, the C was cut to ribbons, etc. I loved it. However, the children informed me the book was scary, and my son requested that I never read it again!
I couldn't resist picking up a copy when I ran across it recently. Someday, I'll have grandchildren (hopefully), and I'll get to share The Z was Zapped with a new generation when they are ready to be frightened a bit.
May 28, 2009
This alphabet book is quite a unique production; each letter appears on the right-hand side of the book, then when the page is turned a brief bit of text is given: "The A was in an Avalanche," "The B was badly bitten," and so on. This lends a bit of a wordless-book experience, since the image must be interpreted before the text is read.
It is rendered in black-and-white charcoal, and unlike most alphabet books, the scene never shifts, but their presentation is called "a Play in 26 acts." The artistry is wonderful, of course, given Van Allsburg's reputation; for aspiring artists this could be inspirational, but it's more of an artistic showpiece than a book for young children to interact with. It is, however, nice that the application of different letters tends to be through verbs rather than the nouns that usually accompany the letters in alphabet books. This would make an interesting library checkout as a supplement while teaching or reviewing the alphabet.
It is rendered in black-and-white charcoal, and unlike most alphabet books, the scene never shifts, but their presentation is called "a Play in 26 acts." The artistry is wonderful, of course, given Van Allsburg's reputation; for aspiring artists this could be inspirational, but it's more of an artistic showpiece than a book for young children to interact with. It is, however, nice that the application of different letters tends to be through verbs rather than the nouns that usually accompany the letters in alphabet books. This would make an interesting library checkout as a supplement while teaching or reviewing the alphabet.
October 2, 2013
This is a dramatic and entertaining alphabet book that engages your brain as you try to imagine the narrative that goes with each picture. The alphabet is presented in '26 Acts,' with each letter on one page in a scene that is explained on the reverse side of the page.
We had a blast guessing what the words would be and we had lots of laughs over the images and the narrative. The 'play' has a bit of a film-noir theme, with black and white images and dangerous themes. Overall, it's a fun and short book to read aloud and we really enjoyed reading it together.
This book was selected as one of the books for the October 2013 - Alphabet books discussion at the Picture-Book Club in the Children's Books Group here at Goodreads.
We had a blast guessing what the words would be and we had lots of laughs over the images and the narrative. The 'play' has a bit of a film-noir theme, with black and white images and dangerous themes. Overall, it's a fun and short book to read aloud and we really enjoyed reading it together.
This book was selected as one of the books for the October 2013 - Alphabet books discussion at the Picture-Book Club in the Children's Books Group here at Goodreads.
February 7, 2012
This unique "alphabet" book was clever and fun to read. The black-and-white (pencil) drawn illustrations are impressing, mostly because of their ability to convey texture, depth, and fine detail. Chris Van Allsburg include an illustration of each single letter of the alphabet (in 26 "acts") undergoing some type of strange change on a page. Following this page is a short explanation on the next page about the previously shown letter (such as: "The F was firmly flattened"). The alliteration, the illustrations, and the fact that kids (and adults) get to use their imaginations before turning the page makes this book a fun and educational choice. This adds a whole new twist on alphabet books!
March 24, 2012
This was such a fun ABC book! The way that the book is laid out makes it a great vocabulary builder, a fun guessing game, and an entertaining excercise in observation and creative thinking. The kids had a ball trying to figure what actions were happening to the letters in this book. They usually aren't all that wild about ABC books, but this one is right up there with their favorites (Superhero ABC, and just about any ABC book by Jerry Pallotta). I had a lot of fun with it, too, and the pictures are really quite nice!
October 29, 2013
I've always liked Van Allsburg. My 5 year old (and I) had a lot of fun guessing what each picture was depicting. And she enjoyed it through multiple rereadings as well. The book is set up so that the picture is on one page and the words (one line for each letter) were on the following page. I like the illustrations and found that many of the events occurring to each letter were quite creative.
September 20, 2011
this is a good book for younger children because it brings into account different letters and associating them to different words; however, the illustrations and tone of the book may not be appropriate. this book goes through each letter of the alphabet and talks about something happening to the letter. hence the name: "the z was zapped."
February 14, 2018
This book didn't have a lot of bright colors but it was definitely entertaining and makes you guess what is going to happen next. It teaches children the alphabet while introducing new words that start with each of the letters. The illustrations are hilarious.
May 9, 2009
I loved this alphabet book. I had fun trying to see if I could guess what was happening to each letter. The A was in an avalanche. The B was badly bitten, etc.
December 19, 2014
Chris Van Allsburg always comes up with something unusual that appeals to kids and adults of all ages. He has done that once again with this intriguing black and white alphabet book.
July 3, 2016
Rather morbit, but well drawn.
November 23, 2019
Loved!!!
May 20, 2024
Cute alphabet book with just a touch of noir-ishness, with beautiful illustrations.
October 25, 2020
Along with "Harris Burdick", this is probably my favorite Van Allsburg book. The charcoal (I think...) drawings are exquisite. The best ABC book I know.
September 17, 2021
খুব সুন্দর! বাংলা অক্ষর নিয়ে এমন একটা বই হলে মন্দ হতোনা!
September 21, 2012
In terms of alphabet books, I found this one to be highly entertaining and hilarious. The book goes through each letter of the alphabet, and something unpleasant ends up happening to each letter! For example, the D was drowned, the N was nailed, and the Z was zapped. The illustrations are funny and I found my self eagerly turning to the next page to see what happens to the next letter. The one thing I found a little irritating, however, was the location of the text. The text for each picture was located on the next page rather than the same page, and I found myself having to flip back and forth to match them up, which I found a bit annoying. Overall, an very visually entertaining book!
November 21, 2017
I would recommend this book for the early primary grades, kindergarten through first grade. I would categorize the book as poetry
This is a great book to incorporate into the classroom. It reinforces the alphabet in a fun and exciting way. It also helps students learn how to make predictions. Each page has one letter of the alphabet, and the "thing" that happens to the letter, starts with that letter. This is a great skill that students need to learn, so why not practice at a young age? You could incorporate this into upper elementary classrooms as well, but I think it would work best at a lower elementary.
This is a great book to incorporate into the classroom. It reinforces the alphabet in a fun and exciting way. It also helps students learn how to make predictions. Each page has one letter of the alphabet, and the "thing" that happens to the letter, starts with that letter. This is a great skill that students need to learn, so why not practice at a young age? You could incorporate this into upper elementary classrooms as well, but I think it would work best at a lower elementary.
August 5, 2019
Who knew there were so many alphabet books to choose from? Chris Van Allsburg is a wonderful illustrator and this book reflected that. I loved the descriptive pictures. However the layout of the book will deter me from reading it again. The illustrations are on the right, the words on the left. Except that the words describe the letter and illustration of the previous page. So When I'm looking at Letter D - as in "The D was nearly Drowned" - the words I see are " The C was cut to ribbons.' Maybe it's a guessing game? Whatever the intent, too distracting for me. Which is a shame because it really is a beautiful book.
June 20, 2017
The Z Was Zapped: A Play in Twenty-Six Acts is one of my favorite ABC books. The black and white illustrations give it a mysterious feel, like there is a puzzle to solve. Act 1 begins with a picture of rocks falling on the A on stage. When you turn the page you find out what happened to the a, "The A was in an avalanche." Something is happening to each letter in all 26 acts. Children have fun guessing what could be happening to them. After reading this to my students I find they keep going back to it.
June 7, 2019
I was mildly creeped out by the bunny holding the title but I was intrigued by the title of the book.
Interesting choice, having the picture not viewable at the same time as the words describing it, but it gives time to admire and anticipate.
I read it in a lilting way, even though there were no obvious rhymes, and I loved that when it got to z it had the word "finally" as if the audience was just WAITING for that damned z to get zapped.
Interesting choice, having the picture not viewable at the same time as the words describing it, but it gives time to admire and anticipate.
I read it in a lilting way, even though there were no obvious rhymes, and I loved that when it got to z it had the word "finally" as if the audience was just WAITING for that damned z to get zapped.
February 15, 2017
Picture book, Alphabet
I liked this.
I love the black and white illustrations that look like photographs.
I would definitely use this to teach the alphabet to lower grades.
My only issue is that the words that correspond to each letter are on the back of the page with the picture, not next to it. I would want the students to see what was happening while reading about it.
I liked this.
I love the black and white illustrations that look like photographs.
I would definitely use this to teach the alphabet to lower grades.
My only issue is that the words that correspond to each letter are on the back of the page with the picture, not next to it. I would want the students to see what was happening while reading about it.
February 20, 2018
An alphabet book that prompts readers to use the picture to predict what the text will be on the back. The clue is in the illustration and based on the letter being emphasized.
A great book for practicing predictions and interpreting illustrations and using context for clues. Some of the words are a little fancy, such as warped, and may introduce new vocabulary to kids.
A great book for practicing predictions and interpreting illustrations and using context for clues. Some of the words are a little fancy, such as warped, and may introduce new vocabulary to kids.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 278 reviews