In a visual departure from van Lieshout's previous books, this alphabetical tribute to road signs rolls along glossy black pages designed to look like highway blacktop with a dotted white center line. Each letter of the alphabet is paired with a familiar road sign (No Entry, Stop, Yield, etc.). Van Lieshout keeps the formula simple, allowing readers to make their own connections between the white capital letters and the images (Q stands for "Quack," which appears on a yellow sign showing ducks crossing). Backseat drivers will enjoy learning the language of the road along with their ABCs. Ages 3-6. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (May)
[Page ]. Copyright 2012 PWxyz LLCPreS-Gr 1--With a "Vroom! Vroom!," a yellow sedan travels a highway with a young child looking out from the the backseat. Along the journey, alphabetically organized road signs pan by. An uppercase white letter is paired with a corresponding road sign: "A"-"Airport," "B"-"Bike Route," and "C"- "Children at Play." Detour, library, no entry, one way, and stop are some of the more commonly known symbols while less common ones include helicopter, junction, and rail. The text is limited, giving full attention to the signage, which is set against a black roadway with white line markings. The front and back endpapers mirror the same highway design found within the book. There is only a slight overlap with Tana Hoban's I Read Signs (Greenwillow, 1983). Van Lieshout's work is for a younger audience and has a narrower focus than John Searcy's Signs in Our World (DK, 2006). Backseat A-B-See fits well into transportation lessons and could be used independently or with groups of children. This is a worthy concept picture book where more current materials on signs and symbols are needed.--Lynn Vanca, freelance librarian, Akron, OH
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