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Alphabet
An Amazing ABC Safari for Preschoolers! In Matthew Van Fleet's incredible new multiconcept book, over 100 creatures and plants from A to Z hilariously demonstrate action words, synonyms, opposites, and more. Young explorers are challenged to spot four plants or animals that begin with each letter of the alphabet. Twenty-three textures plus foils, flaps, pull tabs, and even a scratch-and-sniff scent add to the interactive surprises on every page.
20 pages, Hardcover
First published April 8, 2008
2 people are currently reading
192 people want to read
About the author
Matthew Van Fleet
35 books47 followersMatthew Van Fleet's innovative books have been introducing children to basic concepts for over twenty years. His unique formats invite toddlers to touch, press, pull, lift and even sniff as they explore colors, shapes, numbers, letters, opposites and more. His books include the #1 New York Times bestsellers TAILS and DOG as well as the New York Times bestsellers CAT, ALPHABET, and HEADS.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
January 14, 2016
The interactive features are cool, but also easily destroyed by small hands. Some of the animals listed are obscure and cause confusion to the point that it hinders rather than develops phonic awareness. I think a lot of young children may now think skunk starts with z and monkey starts with t, for instance, thanks to this book.
I feel like the author was perhaps confused about who his target audience is supposed to be. My daughter is now 2 and has already known her alphabet for some time, and can identify letters. We are now working on helping her connect-the-dots between the letters she sees and the sounds in her alphabet with words on a page. She enjoys this book for the animals and features, but doesn't connect with its purpose. Granted, my daughter may be on the young side for this stage of literacy, but I would think learning the alphabet and developing phonic awareness would be appropriate for a toddler up through kindergarten; whereas the vocabulary and delicate nature of a few of the features seems more appropriate for a child kindergarten and up.
As a side note, I also struggled with the book's poor sentence structure.
So, while this was a fun book to look at, it could've be done a lot better as it just totally mangled its intent.
I feel like the author was perhaps confused about who his target audience is supposed to be. My daughter is now 2 and has already known her alphabet for some time, and can identify letters. We are now working on helping her connect-the-dots between the letters she sees and the sounds in her alphabet with words on a page. She enjoys this book for the animals and features, but doesn't connect with its purpose. Granted, my daughter may be on the young side for this stage of literacy, but I would think learning the alphabet and developing phonic awareness would be appropriate for a toddler up through kindergarten; whereas the vocabulary and delicate nature of a few of the features seems more appropriate for a child kindergarten and up.
As a side note, I also struggled with the book's poor sentence structure.
So, while this was a fun book to look at, it could've be done a lot better as it just totally mangled its intent.
January 3, 2011
I love Matthew Van Fleet's sturdy pop up books, but this one is not my favorite. The animals he uses are a little obscure and cause some confusion for kids in his age audience. For example he uses an animal whose name starts with a D and is widely unknown, but it looks like a gorilla. Mackenzie said "D is for gorilla" when she looked at it. She's not far enough along in her alphabet knowledge to realize that it's not quite right. Of course it made for some interesting conversation about the different animals, but if the purpose is alphabet it can be somewhat confusing.
January 14, 2025
The power of this book lies in its creative presentation rather than in writing skill.
March 26, 2019
My mom found this huge and super interactive book that we keep at her house for a special treat. When we visit, my toddler can't tear herself away from it. That said, she *can* tear pieces of the book off, so buyer beware. You'll need tape for repairs. You also might need Google to look up some of the animals (zorilla? Really?) But it's been worth it for us - lots of flap-lifting, texture-touching, motion-pulling fun.
July 12, 2020
A smorgasbord of visual and tactile delights. Evoking sight, touch, sound and even smell, Van Fleet's work makes literacy a party for the senses. There is an added look-and-find element at the back, too, offering more than just an ordinary alphabet primer. This edition also comes with pull-out alphabet poster that features all the animals in Van Fleet's signature style.
February 14, 2020
Full of colors and textures, this books presents kids with different animals. It allows them to play as they learn. It's a nice book.
owned-books-read
December 19, 2022Notes to self: Kangaroos and Nightingales need repair.
March 18, 2023
Wow what an incredibly well designed and detailed alphabet book full of joyful and fun illustrations, and little interactive elements. A must for toddlers!
November 18, 2025
Bought for our newest family member, Reeve Mitchell Pieniazek. It’s an adorable & sturdy alphabet book. Reeve’s sister, Remi, will hopefully get some fun out of it, too.
September 11, 2013
My daughter really enjoys Matthew Van Fleet's books, so I was excited to see this one recently acquired by our library. It's my favorite yet!
There are so many ways to interact with the pages--parts to move, flaps to lift (in multiple directions), and more textures to touch than I've encountered in any other book of this sort. It also has much sturdier construction than I've seen in other books of this style (heavy duty flaps, strong levers to push or pull...
I especially enjoy the variety in the animals that he selects to include. Instead of going for the usual suspects that you encounter in nearly every children's animal book--he opts for more more exotic species. I love that my daughter has the chance to learn about nighteigales and Quahogs and Uacaris! It seems that he enjoys challenging children to learn new things and expand their knowledge base, which is something I appreciate.
I have a hard time imagining a pre-school aged child who wouldn't enjoy this book. With clever illustrations, fun rhymes and plenty of interaction to keep busy fingers engaged, it's sure to be a hit.
There are so many ways to interact with the pages--parts to move, flaps to lift (in multiple directions), and more textures to touch than I've encountered in any other book of this sort. It also has much sturdier construction than I've seen in other books of this style (heavy duty flaps, strong levers to push or pull...
I especially enjoy the variety in the animals that he selects to include. Instead of going for the usual suspects that you encounter in nearly every children's animal book--he opts for more more exotic species. I love that my daughter has the chance to learn about nighteigales and Quahogs and Uacaris! It seems that he enjoys challenging children to learn new things and expand their knowledge base, which is something I appreciate.
I have a hard time imagining a pre-school aged child who wouldn't enjoy this book. With clever illustrations, fun rhymes and plenty of interaction to keep busy fingers engaged, it's sure to be a hit.
August 28, 2008
Genre: Alphabet Book
Grade: Preschool-1st
This book is an alphabet book of animals. Each letter has an animal that starts with that letter accompanying it. Not only does it have the name of the animal, but there is a short line describing the texture of part of the animal. For example for the letter C it says, "Scratchy pink Cougar tongues." On this page the tongue of the cougar feels like sandpaper. Each animal has a texture on it that chidren can feel. Some of the pages have moving parts or fold out to make the page bigger. The book comes with a poster that has pop ups for each letter on it. I think children would enjoy this book because it allows them to be interactive.
Activities:
1. On each page there are two other creatures and one plant that starts with the letter on the page. The teacher could have the students locate these.
2. As a class the students could make a list of other animals they can think of that start with each letter of the alphabet.
Grade: Preschool-1st
This book is an alphabet book of animals. Each letter has an animal that starts with that letter accompanying it. Not only does it have the name of the animal, but there is a short line describing the texture of part of the animal. For example for the letter C it says, "Scratchy pink Cougar tongues." On this page the tongue of the cougar feels like sandpaper. Each animal has a texture on it that chidren can feel. Some of the pages have moving parts or fold out to make the page bigger. The book comes with a poster that has pop ups for each letter on it. I think children would enjoy this book because it allows them to be interactive.
Activities:
1. On each page there are two other creatures and one plant that starts with the letter on the page. The teacher could have the students locate these.
2. As a class the students could make a list of other animals they can think of that start with each letter of the alphabet.
September 20, 2015
A fantastic book for learning the alphabet, and about some really interesting plants and animals.
This was the type of book that I enjoyed as a child, and continue to appreciate as an adult. Although there is only one sentence and animal highlighted for each letter, the pages are filled with other animals and plants that also fit the letter(s) on the pages. It is a bit of a scavenger hunt to find them all (with a key at the end for times that you encounter and unfamiliar being). The illustrations not only add to the learning and enjoyment in this way they are in themselves quite adorable.
On top of that, the pages have places to touch and 'activate' (e.g. lift the Quahog clam shell to feel its squishy interior). These features add another layer of exploration to the book.
Overall, a wonderful book for children learning about the alphabet and the world around them, and a great book for adults who enjoy a wonderful children's book.
This was the type of book that I enjoyed as a child, and continue to appreciate as an adult. Although there is only one sentence and animal highlighted for each letter, the pages are filled with other animals and plants that also fit the letter(s) on the pages. It is a bit of a scavenger hunt to find them all (with a key at the end for times that you encounter and unfamiliar being). The illustrations not only add to the learning and enjoyment in this way they are in themselves quite adorable.
On top of that, the pages have places to touch and 'activate' (e.g. lift the Quahog clam shell to feel its squishy interior). These features add another layer of exploration to the book.
Overall, a wonderful book for children learning about the alphabet and the world around them, and a great book for adults who enjoy a wonderful children's book.
January 29, 2018
2017: This was fantastic. First there's the alphabet itself, represented by an animal for each letter with a lovely rhyming scheme and even some fun push-tab action and flaps to lift. But beyond that, each fantastic double page illustration shows two more animals and a plant starting with each letter - and as they were unmarked, my husband and I had a great time trying to guess what each one was (prior to discovering the answer key in the back!) and we learned so much! There were a surprising number of animals we've never heard of (most from Australia!), and naturally we spent the time googling each one to learn about it. I can't wait to do the same with my son when he's old enough!
2018: Benji had a blast touching all the touch spots - especially trying to pull out the hogs' tails!
2018: Benji had a blast touching all the touch spots - especially trying to pull out the hogs' tails!
February 18, 2016
This multi-sensory book for the very young reader is very attractive, probably a little to attractive to little hands that explore a little to rough. However, author Matthew Van Fleet has done a wonderful job incorporating scratch-and sniff, pull tabs, pop-ups, flaps, and touch and feel. Its a fantastic book for learning the alphabet, animals, and plants. Its a fun read. Its enjoyable interacting trying to find and name all the things that start with that letter on the page. The target audience for this multi-concept book is 2-6years old.
July 12, 2008
Neat book with over 100 creatures and plants from A to Z . Young explorers are challenged to spot four plants or animals that begin with each letter of the alphabet. 23 textures plus foils, flaps, pull tabs add to the interactive surprises on each page. Very cute details. I enjoyed this book and know that little children would too. It would be a lot of fun to read one-on-one with a child--many things to look for and surprises on each page.
May 10, 2008
My daugher absolutely adores this book and I think it is very cleverly done. It has a lot of touch and feel that keeps toddlers focused on the book. We're big fans of Tails by the same author. A lot of fun for Toddlers and a great way to teach them the Alphabet and animals at the same time. Plus it comes with a really cool poster with flaps on it!
June 9, 2008
This book is very cute but not a borrow-from-the-library book because by the time we got it from the library (and it's relatively new) some of the flaps were already torn off. Heathens. When I was a Children's Librarian this is the type of book I would have either kept exclusively in my story time collection or in the "library use only" collection.
March 17, 2011
We've had this from birth (written at 22 months). Tactile for the young, some atypical animal choices for the older kids to expand their animal vocabulary beyond the typical. Take care with the legs on the kangaroos, I've had to glue them and my daughter is actually very careful with her books. A fun one when she's not really interested in a serious read but wants to flip through a book.
January 2, 2009
Kendall received this book from a good friend for Christmas, and we have all loved it. It has cute pictures and so many textures to feel for every letter of the alphabet. We are exciited to add this book to our collection.
July 27, 2009
I think that I would give one and a half stars to this imaginative alphabet book.
Matthew Van Fleet has brought some interesting twists to this old concept, and I appreciate the creativity. What I really liked best was the sticky octopus.
Matthew Van Fleet has brought some interesting twists to this old concept, and I appreciate the creativity. What I really liked best was the sticky octopus.
March 17, 2011
Avery loves this book. With so many textures to play with, flaps to lift and sparkles to discover he is happy to open it up himself and play for ages. He's not really interested in me reading it to him!
January 21, 2013
Okay, so how much do I love this book which has texture and movement on many pages plus it's got a whole alphabet poster with pop-ups! Very fun. I guess I will share it with the grandchild...if they behave.
April 11, 2016
Every letter is the name of an animal and each animal has something the student can interact with. This is a great tactile ABC book that will interest children. Could have students make their own animal will interactive features.
April 12, 2008
another great one by Matthew Van Fleet... a gotta have for toddlers ...our stink bug does not stink ...
Want to read
April 22, 2008Ages 2 to 6
May 13, 2008
Touch and feel book. Toddler/preschooler
June 7, 2008
This is simply marvelous. Great animal alphabet book, great illustrations, great "touch and feel" effects.
June 23, 2008
If I were a toddler, this is the book I'd want to play with. Things move, things are sticky, and the stinkbug stinks.
Even better than his Tails, which was awesome.
Even better than his Tails, which was awesome.
July 11, 2008
lots of tactile things here -- stuff to touch, moving parts, a fold out flap. It's like a book wonderland!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews