A to Z Animal Picnic, written and illustrated by Kim Marie, offers an alphabet book, a fun animal storyline, and reinforcement of letter sounds through repetition in just 34 short pages!
In the author/illustrator’s own words, “Follow the animals, from A to Z, as they make their way to the annual animal picnic. Every page is a bit of a tongue twister – reinforcing the sound of each letter of the alphabet through repetition.”
That means that instead of offering trite sayings like, “C is for cat,” A to Z Animal Picnic reads, “Calvin Cat carried crates of candy, cake, and chocolate chip cookies to the car. Cora Cow chose carrots, cabbage, and celery,” with each featured letter thoughtfully highlighted in purple.
The illustrations offer simple scenes with few, yet incredibly thoughtful, details. I was delighted to realize the illustrations detailed more than the main picnic story, from a backstory about ants that you might not notice until you’re several pages in, to items illustrated but not mentioned in the text, like the daises and daffodils in Darcy Duck’s window.
And just when you think the story is over, the author offers a page of fun tongue twisters to try and a challenge (and cheat sheet) to identify hidden items throughout the book.
What did my seven-year-old daughter think of A to Z Animal Picnic?
I really liked all of the tongue twisters!
– a silly, sassy, seven-year-old
Overall, this book is a fun read for children just learning their letters and those who are reading but enjoy tongue twisters and a bit of wordplay. And let’s be honest, it was fun for me as a parent to read and share with my daughter.
You can find A to Z Animal Picnic on Amazon or the author’s website, where she shares her books, adventures, and original artwork. Bonus: Marie also offers a companion A to Z Animal Picnic Coloring Book on Amazon!
Enjoy!
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