Take Away the A
Enchanted Lion Books/Publishers Group Canada Books
By Michael Escoffier, illustrated by Kris Di Giacomo
56 pages
age 3-5, 5-8
Synopsis from Publisher Group Canada Books:
Take Away the A is a fun, imaginative romp through the alphabet. The idea behind the book is that within every language there are words that change and become a different word through the simple subtraction of a single letter.
Alphabet concept books are a staple in any child’s library. They help with letter recognition, sound, word association and order. Take Away the A goes a step further but illustrating how each letter is important. I still remark to my own children that they need to take their time writing their words to avoid changing the meaning of their sentence. Forget the R in Crow and “The crow is perched on the tree branch” becomes “The cow is perched on the tree branch”. Take Away the A tells mini stories with each letter, illustrating in both the words and the images how removing a letter from a word can change the story.
As a parent who has seen her share of alphabet books, I love that Take Away the A still gets across what most concept books work to achieve but makes it interesting and fun. It’s actually a concept book that can extend its life on a child’s bookshelf as he or she moves from learning letters to reading. The illustrations are fun and I’m a big fan of the larger book format for design.
You can find a copy of Take Away the A from Simon Schuster Canada. Visit our Kid’s Books section for other great book recommendations.
This is a good book to introduce the alphabet to the kids.