ABC T-Rex - Bernard Most

Hungry T-Rex takes readers through the alphabet.

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Common Sense rates it
4
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Book details
  • Author:Bernard Most
  • # of pages: 40
  • Publisher:Harcourt Brace and Co.
  • Original Publication Date: 03/06/2000
  • Genre: Non-Fiction - Alphabet
  • Hardcover: $14.00
  • Publisher's Recommended Reading Level: Ages 4-8
  • Read Aloud: 4+

Parents need to know

Parents need to know that there aren't any red flags in this slim story of a widely popular creature that's told in a series of one-sentence lines, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. Children can identify corresponding objects from colorful, boldly outlined illustrations.

Families can talk about how the author used the alphabet as a literary device to help structure the story. What was your favorite illustration? What did you like about it? Parents and kids can also have fun looking up facts about the infamous T-Rex and comparing the cute, cartoon version to the real thing.

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Common Sense says

What's the story?

Reviewed by Amy Brotman

Munch, munch, munch! This nonscientific tale depicts a tyrannosaurus eating a multitude of objects, including each letter of the alphabet. This clever theme for an ABC book will delight beginning readers as they identify the many objects on each page whose names begin with the featured letter.

A tyrannosaurus takes the reader through the alphabet, munching on letters with every turn of the page. The comical dinosaur appears among myriad alliterative objects (some obvious, some obscure). A list is provided at the end of the book to help readers locate the less identifiable items.

Is it any good?

4

ABC T-REX acquaints children with the shape and name of each letter of the alphabet, as well as objects that begin with the featured letter. The dinosaur munches only on capital letters, but the uppercase and lowercase version of each letter is presented (in boldface) in the single line of text accompanying each illustration. The final pages offer an alphabetized inventory of "some extra things to look for," which encourages young readers to return to pages to find all the objects on the list.

ABC books exist to present and emphasize the letters of the alphabet, and authors typically sacrifice a cohesive story line to achieve this goal. This is true for ABC T-REX, but there is a uniting theme that helps fuse the actions of the character together.

Many boldly colored objects whose names begin with the featured letter are drawn on each page, and the illustrator has gone to great lengths to tie the objects together in some logical fashion. For example, the letter K depicts the tyrannosaurus in a kitchen wearing a kangaroo-print shirt holding a shish kebab with its tail while pouring ketchup. In the background is a kitten eating kibble, and a kettle on the kitchen stove.

There are many ABC books to choose from. Crockett Johnson's Harold's ABC depicts the beloved character drawing a single picture associated with each letter of the alphabet with his purple crayon. Lois Ehlert's Eating the Alphabet: Fruits and Vegetables From A to Z offers more links between food and letters. Tana Hoban's 26 Letters and 99 Cents is both an ABC book and a counting book.

Parents and kids say

All Reviews

There are 3 reviews.

5

Posted on 06/24/05 by Anonymous Adult contributor

5

Posted on 06/24/05 by Anonymous Adult contributor

2

Posted on 12/17/04 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Adult Reviews

There are 3 reviews.

5

Posted on 06/24/05 by Anonymous Adult contributor

5

Posted on 06/24/05 by Anonymous Adult contributor

2

Posted on 12/17/04 by Anonymous Adult contributor

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