Reviews

Award-winning author and musician Johnette Downing invites children of all ages to go wild in the rainforest with dozens of exotic animals in this colorful trek through the Amazon. This A to Z adventure includes fascinating facts about some of the world’s most unique creatures, from woolly monkeys and pink dolphins to electric eels, ocelots, jaguars, and more. A special list of facts about the rainforest and its conservation complete this exotic escapade. - The Children's Book Council, Go Green Section, http://www.cbcbooks.org/readinglists/Go%20Green!%20(Off%20Website)/book/406

"Amazon Alphabet by Johnette Downing, an alphabetical exploration of the rainforest." - Publishers Weekly, Children’s Books, Spring 2011
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-industry-news/article/43860-children-s-books-spring-2011-sneak-previews.html

From A for the Amazon River to Z for zoologists who study its animals, this introduction to Amazonian fauna uses the English alphabet to organize fast facts about a variety of rainforest and river residents. The design is straightforward. Each page includes an upper-case letter, a statement—“Q is for quetzal,” for instance—and two or three facts about the species (with only three exceptions, all letters correspond to different animals). Simple cloth-and-paper collage illustrations incorporate pieces of paper with the appropriate letters printed in both upper and lower case.... - Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2011 Issue

“An amazing way to present the alphabet.” - Waycross Journal-Herald, Waycross, GA, February 19, 2011 Issue

Book: Amazon Alphabet by Johnette Downing. This colorful adventure takes kids of all ages from A to Z through the Amazon, introducing familiar folk such as frogs and jaguars, as well as the unfamiliar including the caiman and quetzal. Facts and features accompany each alphabetic selection.
Boredom buster: Zoo time! Many zoos have an Amazon Rainforest feature where kids can enjoy an A-to-Z scavenger hunt of things featured in the book. If your local zoo doesn't have such an exhibit, enjoy an A-to-Z hunt of other animals. If schedules, weather, or budgets nix a zoo visit, use the pictures in the book as inspiration for drawing Amazon animals for creating your own rainforest in your backyard or home.
-Grandmas Briefs - Books and Boredom Busters!!, http://www.grandmasbriefs.com/home/2011/5/26/5-books-and-boredom-busters.html

Reviewed by Cayden Aures (age 6) and Mom for Reader Views (3/11)
Cayden‟s comments:
“I really liked this book a lot! It is a book about things in the Amazon. I didn‟t know where that was but we looked it up on a map. The Amazon River goes through South America.
For every letter in the alphabet there is something that lives there. A lot of the animals I didn‟t know until now. I liked the katydids. It said that they sing a song that sounds like „Katy did; Katy didn‟t.‟ I have never heard them before but we found it on the computer and listened to them on there.
I liked trying to find the letters that were hidden on every page. That was a lot of fun. The pictures in this book are awesome! They are made from cut-up pieces of paper. I even made one page out of the book by myself, the piranha page. I cut out colored papers like in the picture and glued it on a piece of paper and it looks like the picture in the book. I might try to do more of them too.”
Parent‟s comments:
We loved this highly educational book about the Amazon! There was so much great information about the different animals presented and we learned a lot. The unique collage illustrations were so much fun and my son has had a blast trying to recreate them. We highly recommend “Amazon Alphabet!” -Reader Views, Reviews by Kids for Kids, www.readerviewskids.com, admin@readerviews.com