The Alphabet from A to Y With Bonus Letter Z! by Steve Martin

The Alphabet from A to Y With Bonus Letter Z! Reviews

• 
  John of Canada

  Steve Martin silliness,Roz Chast weird art,and a bonus letter Z(we pronounce it zed in Canada which Martin missed and which cost him a star).
• 
  Christina

  oh how i wish i wrote and illustrated this SUPERBLY silly book.
  
  i could read this book ten thousand times (and i probably have) and still laugh out loud. Of course my daughter probably doesn't get all the jokes and puns, but who cares? It's entertaining for any adult and is a wonderful break from the typical children's books.
  
  disregard the people who poo-pooed the book in earlier reviews due to it's more adult nature. i didn't read this book to my daughter when she was learning the alphabet, clearly it's too mature for that age. she's been reading it since she turned 4 and was already completely familiar with the alphabet and letter sounds. she laughs just as much as i do when reading this book. it's one of her favourites. if your child has a sense of humour, then you should have no worries.
• 
  Marcie

  I can see using this with older students as the rhyming couplets are irreverent (What do you expect from Steve Martin?). I know teacher's who balk at the word stupid, but I think the kids will enjoy the language and laugh at the cartoon illustrations. The detail will require kids to get close up (or use a document camera to enlarge). The endpapers are wonderful with various symbols lamenting being left out of the alphabet. Words for looking up can be found on every page.
• 
  emyrose8

  What a great book to teach both couplets and alliteration! Filled with tons of potential vocabulary words (in the pictures and couplets), this would be a great read aloud book.
• 
  Bryn

  Genre: Alphabet Book
  Grade: 2-4
  
  This book was written by the comedian and actor Steve Martin. It is a fun and creative way of demonstrating pictures and words that begin with each letter of the alphabet. The book is structured so that one page has one sentence describing what is happening on the opposite page. The sentence uses letters that start with one letter of the alphabet, and are written in a rhyme. The picture contains many examples of objects that start with the same letter, along with many other items that match the letter. The illustrations are very detailed and you have to study them closely to see their many hidden parts.
  
  Activity #1: I like this book because it makes the reader think about the meaning of the vocabulary, and requires focus to fully understand the illustrations. It's not a typical alphabet book, and makes the material a lot more interesting than other books do. The book would be great to use with second through fourth grade students. I would love to read the book as a class, not talking about the pictures much or discussing the vocabulary. I would then assign each student a letter to look at in more detail and then present to the rest of the class. The students would look up words they didn't know in the dictionary, write out definitions, and then include them in their presentation. They would also study the illustration so they could point out details about the image that other people might not see when they first read the book. After they had finished with their work, I would read the book again as a class and then have each student share what they researched.
  
  Activity #2: An addition to this activity would be to have the students make their own illustrations for the text and the letter. They could do this by drawing, painting, or making a collage. The students could then present it to the class when they share their research. It would be fun for the teacher to take each student's creation and either hang them up on the wall in order of letter, or even to bind each piece together to make a classroom alphabet book.
  
  
• 
  Elizabeth Tye

  3/5 stars. Physical book. I got this book to meet a requirement for a reading challenge. Since I don't really like any comedian enough to read a book written by them, I settled for a children's book by Steve Martin. The idea was nice, but the execution was poor. The script style letters were also confusing for my two year old. It was okay.
• 
  Linda

  Unique ABC book with clever wordings including words that both start with and include the letter. Illustrations are incredibly detailed and give ample opportunities to explore each letter. Some images, such as the drunk for letter D might bother some parents. Still, entirely amusing for all ages.
  
  Kirkus Review:
  "...crossover will slide effortlessly onto the bestseller lists, but it's not likely to win its creators many new adult fans-or any child ones. Showing a fine disregard for foolish consistencies like end words that actually rhyme consistently, Martin fashions surreal situations in 26 couplets, each paired to a literal illustration from Chast..."
  
  Publisher's Weekly:
  "This peculiar and funny book resembles a round of the Surrealists' game of exquisite cadaver or Mad Libs, worked out in a dizzying combination of words and pictures. All ages."
  
  
  
• 
  Rebecca

  Okay, so Jamie Lee Curtis isn't the ONLY shining light in the wasteland of celebrity picture books -- I now acknowledge a place for Steve Martin, as well. This book is a hoot to read, especially if you've ever played the game that starts "Alice lives in Alabama and sells apples," etc. Your tongue will get twisted, and yet the rhymes aren't awkward as with some rhyming books. But the real fun is in the illustrations. The cartoons are chock-full of further alliteration and many more levels of comedy.
  
  "I loVVVe your jacket! Is it vintage? Velvet? Vinyl? Vegan? Does it close with Velcro? Did it come with a Vest?"
• 
  Josiah

  This is a fun, fresh look at the very old concept of introducing the alphabet through funny imagery to beginning students. Steve Martin hits some very satisfying comic notes, and one can easily tell by the book's structure that both author and illustrator took some extra effort to make this a quality product. Kudos to Steve Martin and Roz Chast on this volume, and I will be interested in further such forays by Steve Martin into the world of literature for young readers. I have always considered him to be very funny, and I think that his brand of humor would stand an excellent chance of doing well in kid's stories.
• 
  Molly

  This is a good example of one of those books that poses as a children's book, but isn't one. I mean, the text is not children-friendly; it features difficult words that don't even rhyme all of the time. There is alliteration, but that doesn't really mean alot to a kid when he doesn't know what is being said. The sentences are a stretch, at best. The illustrations are alright; basically, to me, this book was written for the gratification of the author, or for adults who think Steve Martin is so funny that they want their children to appreciate him, too. And... they're not going to.
• 
  Ellen Shackley

  This book isn't in the text or a medal winner but I grabbed it from the library because it's written by Steve Martin, who I think is hilarious! This is a great alphabet book because not only does it go through each letter and give pictures of anything and everything that you could think of having to do woth that letter, but every page is filled with alliteration. The stories/ excerpts don't make very much sense but the examples and the pictures are wacky and young children would love them. There are also great little hidden tidbits thrown in there for adults!
• 
  Jessica

  Cute, with trademark Steve Martin and Roz Chast humor, but found (surprisingly) that it's not much fun to read aloud to the kids because most of the humor is visual. It's kind of a cartoon silly funny version of Graeme Base's Animalia, in which each picture contains seemingly endless items starting with the letter for that page. Better for older children, though too old and they won't be particularly interested in alphabet books.
• 
  Amber

  "Presented with lots of alliteration and rhyming couplets, the book carefully goes through all 26 letters of the alphabet with matching illustrations to boot. A welcome respite from the traditional “A is for apple” books, this story has a rather advanced vocabulary, so it’s best if it’s read aloud to your little ones, where they can enjoy the sounds of each word as you say them. Best for: Ages 2-5"
• 
  Gwen the Librarian

  Okay. I have to start by saying that is picture book really isn't for the kiddos. BUT this is also not your typical alphabet book. The illustrations had me rolling on the floor with laughter; they so perfectly express and surpass the text. Thank you, Steve Martin (or perhaps Roz Chast), for yet again making me laugh.
• 
  Joanna

  I knew as soon as I saw the headline "Steve Martin releases children's book" I was going to love it. Zany as he is, this is an entertaining version of the standard a-z book. Each page is loaded with words and pictures that feature the individual letter.
• 
  Molly

  I heard a blurb about this book on NPR and was excited to check it out...now, not so much. Basically, it only got the air time because Steve Martin wrote it! I guess maybe adults would like it, but it seems a bit over the top for a kid's book, especially an alphabet book.
• 
  Talia

  I'd give this a 3.5. I'm not sure who the audience is for this book, 1 on 1 read alouds, older children? But I thought this book was clever with cute illustrations, reminding me of Dr. Seuss's ABC book and Graeme Base.
• 
  Lauri

  Even though I am 36, I still am still drawn to children's books from time to time. It's really fun to find all the objects in the illustration that begin with the respective letter and poem. This is a completely fun & charming & non-traditional ABC book.
• 
  Julian

  Bad baby bubbleducks
  beat up his bed with bashed up bananas
  and old moldy bread
  
  BRILLIANT!
  
  I love this book, but I think my son can't wait for me to stop reciting the above quote over and over to him.
• 
  N

  This would be your standard alphabet book except for the weirdo drawings. Oh, and that it was written by Steve Martin.
  
  "Yesterday Yuri the yeti did yoga,
  Today he spilled yogurt all over his toga"