Seeley (author of McHorn and His Hidden Spots) crafts a visually lush alphabet picture book featuring the poetic Shadow, a cosmic entity who uses his magical, starlit shadowboxes to teach young readers their ABC’s. Each shadowbox features one letter of the English alphabet and a mix of people, objects, and hidden words that begin with that letter—a mishmash of beautifully illustrated, letter-centered fun. “Leaves and a ladybug start with an L,” Shadow intones, later encouraging readers to “look for lemons and limes” on that page, while at the bottom edge, he sits on his windowsill in front of a twinkling night sky, licking a lollipop.

Though the alliterative poems are only a few stanzas long, Seeley’s pages teem with letter-related excitement. Each poem is bordered with “Look For” guides, instructing readers on concealed words to search for in that poem’s related shadowbox—an interactive activity that kids and the adults reading to them will treasure working on together. Seeley’s hidden words open up a whole new world of learning, featuring terms that many young readers may not yet know: in the shadowbox for the letter “I,” the picture of an island features the word “icon” shimmering in the water, while “idol” is barely visible in the background of Seeley’s iris portrait. At the end of each poem, Shadow asks readers to find a special item hidden in plain sight (“can you find my drum?” he queries on the page for “D”), increasing the entertainment value for young readers experiencing the newfound joy of language.

Seeley’s illustrations exude a vintage feel with a touch of surrealism, and most of the book’s inanimate objects—eggs, balls of yarn, seashells—feature endearing human faces. The distinctive art and poetry combine to create a multilayered, engaging picture book—one that young readers will likely revisit many times over.

Takeaway: Gorgeously illustrated alphabet book teeming with interactive activities.

Comparable Titles: Neil Gaiman’s The Dangerous Alphabet, Oliver Jeffers’s Once Upon an Alphabet.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A