Nature’s Alphabet

This book was originally published in 1998 and has been republished with a more vibrant and attractive cover. Crowe and Gunson take the reader to wild places in NZ to discover a wide range of flora and fauna. The book also doubles up as an alphabet book and there is one creature/plant featured for each letter.

The text is in large-size font in simple language, perfect for reading with younger children. In smaller size font, is a text box with more detail. For added fun, there are other creatures starting with the same letter to spot.

Gunson’s artwork is accurate and bright. The layout draws the readers’ eyes all over the page to discover more about nature. Some pages include helpful maps and diagrams, and I particularly like the pictogram of an albatross’ wingspan shown the same width as three children with arms outstretched.

This book is multi-levelled and as such could be used for different purposes for different ages.

Title: Nature’s Alphabet

Author: Andrew Crowe

Illustrator: Dave Gunson

Publisher: Bateman Books

ISBN: 9781776890163

RRP: $21.99

Format: Paperback

Publication: March 2022

Ages: 4-9

Themes: natural world

Advisory warnings: none

Would this book work as a read aloud? No

Is there a particular part of the country it’s set in? NZ’s wild places

Reviewer: Nova Gibson, Library Manager, Massey Primary School, Auckland

How are you recommending this book? Highly Recommended

Opening Sentence: A is for Albatross

You can buy this book here