About the Author

Laura Vaccaro Seeger has been called "the queen of the concept book by The Horn Book and is the winner of many awards including two Caldecott Honors, two Geisel Honors, and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award. Her books include The First Egg, One Boy, Green, and the Dog and Bear series.

Reviews

"Innovative ... Opportunities for read-aloud interaction abound here." --Kirkus Reviews "Typesetters will be tickled and printers pleased by Seeger's emotive imagery." --Publishers Weekly "There is surprising depth in this wonderful collaboration of art and story." --School Library Journal "A smart, alphabet-based game." --Best Book of 2005 Award, Child magazine "With colorful illustrations, Seeger takes young readers on an educational journey through the imagination." --Children's Literature

Seeger, who played with letterforms in The Hidden Alphabet, gives new meaning to the word "typeface" here. In this diverting book, oversize adjectives describe children's reactions to changing weather, and the letters in each word reappear in close-up portraits. "Walter was worried when... the sky grew dark," and a spiky W shape on Walter's cheek implies his anxiety. Observant readers soon notice that Walter's eyes are a lowercase O and E, printed in green, and his eyebrows are black lowercase Rs, tipped sideways; his nose is a long straight I, and his frown is a red capital D, turned flat side down. The storm gets worse ("Frederick was frightened when... thunder shook the trees"), but "Delilah was delighted when... the rain turned to snow." Seeger spells out eight key words in multicolored, variable type, then paints corresponding pictures with the tilting or upside-down shapes as facial features; abstract illustrations of flashing lightning and blowing leaves serve as a buffer between each descriptive portrait. The children's names match the alliterative adjectives ("Ursula was upset.... Henry was hopeful"), and readers toy with letter recognition and spelling as they search the faces. The design formula is uncomplicated, but typesetters will be tickled and printers pleased by Seeger's emotive imagery. Ages 3-7. (Sept.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

"Innovative ... Opportunities for read-aloud interaction abound here." --Kirkus Reviews "Typesetters will be tickled and printers pleased by Seeger's emotive imagery." --Publishers Weekly "There is surprising depth in this wonderful collaboration of art and story." --School Library Journal "A smart, alphabet-based game." --Best Book of 2005 Award, Child magazine "With colorful illustrations, Seeger takes young readers on an educational journey through the imagination." --Children's Literature