Mad About Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans

This hardcover includes all the Madeline books.  As I'd only read a couple of them I thought it was time to acquaint myself with the rest.  I expected to love them.  I didn't.

Why?  I've been a stickler for poetry forms since I was a teenager, and the lack of consistent rhyme scheme in the Madeline books irritates me to no end.  You have to read the whole book to know HOW to read them, pacing breath and pronunciation differently every few lines.  Couplets are often inconsistent with the preceding and following couplets.  It sounds like the poetry I wrote when I was ten years old.  I understand that young children may not have a problem with the lyrical scheme and that many feel a deep love for these stories.  Perhaps if I'd read them as a child I'd feel the same way.  It is unfortunate that I did not.  I'd like to enjoy them, but it seems I am a little too late.  Madeline herself is a charming character, but the narrative is inconsistently written.  I'll keep these book stocked in my library, but won't be reading them in storytime.

Creature ABC, by Andrew Zuckerman

Creature ABC is a gorgeous alphabet/nature book.  Each letter is illustrated by two pages of crisply detailed photography of fish, insects, birds, amphibians,and mammals.

Few books take my breath away as this does.  Each scale of the chameleon, feather of the yellow canary, and quill of the porcupine stands out in sharp relief against the white studio background.  The mandrill stares at the camera, looking unnervingly reminiscent of a man in a monkey mask.  This is a book to inspire a new generation of naturalists.

The book is a child's version of this artist's coffee table book Creature, which I think I'll need to seek out next.  I expect I'll seldom see this book again once I return it to the library.  It's so captivating that it won't last an hour on the shelf before another child snaps it up.  I love carrying books that inspire such joy and awe.