An Edible Alphabet

From Kirkus Reviews

“Christensen makes a handsome debut with wood engravings that recall the woodcuts of fellow-Vermonter Mary Azarian (A Farmer's Alphabet, 1981, o.p.). With admirable skill, the artist depicts children and their parents harvesting or using wild and cultivated produce in a wide variety of settings--indoors and out, northern and tropical, city and country. Most of the featured plants are familiar; all, including a few exotics (ipomea, ulu, xanthorhiza), are briefly described at the end. But it's the air of well-being that infuses these prints that draws attention and, ultimately, the delicately incised lines, sure sense of design, and subtly added color that delight.” (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

“Grade 1-3 "A is for apple" gathers fuller richness of meaning in this elegant, artistic book. The first page shows a woman picking apples and a man making cider with a hand press. One child is helping him while a younger one plays on the grass. A border of apple blossoms frames the picture; half of an apple is shown in each corner. In subsequent pictures, different ages and combinations of people of varied races and cultures appear; settings are rural or urban, indoors or out, in all seasons and kinds of weather. "Ulu," the Hawaiian name for breadfruit, and "Xanthorhiza," a yellow root from the Appalachian Mountains used for medicinal tea, represent the hard-to-match letters. There is a cautionary note about edible and inedible plants, as well as a glossary describing each plant in the book and how it is used for consumption. The illustrations are wood engravings to which watercolors have been added. A note explains this printing method, which was developed in the 1700s and allows for more detail than woodcuts. The effect is striking. An Edible Alphabet is somewhat reminiscent of Mary Azarian's A Farmer's Alphabet (Godine, 1981) in atmosphere and illustration, but Azarian's black-and-white woodcuts are more bulky, and her theme is rural life in Vermont. Both titles are beautiful as well as interesting.”

Carolyn Jenks, First Parish Unitarian Church, Portland, ME

Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

“Ages 4-8. In handsome wood engravings full of gardens, people, and movement, Christensen presents an edible plant for each letter of the alphabet. She uses a range of places and cultures, moods and characters, each page a framed scene in black ink and bright watercolors. The picture for Apple shows a woman picking fruit from the tree, a man working a cider-press, and a child collecting the liquid. The setting for Corn is a farm with kids and their dog eating round a campfire. Figs are being grown on a city rooftop garden. A boy sits with a sprig of dill at a kitchen table. Most of the fruits, vegetables, and herbs are common plants; a few, such as Ipomea and Xanthorhiza, will be new to most kids. Christensen provides a list at the back with a brief note about each plant, where it grows and how it's eaten, and a tiny identifying woodcut. She also includes a note about the art and a warning that many species of wild plants may be poisonous. With an extraordinary sense of depth, the pictures celebrate our connection with food that grows on the land.” Hazel Rochman

From Kirkus Reviews

“Christensen makes a handsome debut with wood engravings that recall the woodcuts of fellow-Vermonter Mary Azarian (A Farmer's Alphabet, 1981, o.p.). With admirable skill, the artist depicts children and their parents harvesting or using wild and cultivated produce in a wide variety of settings--indoors and out, northern and tropical, city and country. Most of the featured plants are familiar; all, including a few exotics (ipomea, ulu, xanthorhiza), are briefly described at the end. But it's the air of well-being that infuses these prints that draws attention and, ultimately, the delicately incised lines, sure sense of design, and subtly added color that delight.” (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.