A is for BEE: an alphabet book in translation, written and illustrated by Ellen Heck. Levine Querido, Raincoast. 2022. $23.99 all ages

 

"I is for fish

Inhlanzi in Zulu

Ikan in Malay

Iqalluk in Alutiiq

Iwak in Javanese

Isda in Tagalog "

"We speak to each other in many languages, 
and in some of them ... A is for Bee"

I have always been intrigued by the endless diversity found in alphabet books. There was a time when I had a huge collection of them. So, I was excited to see this new book about animals. I have not seen anything like it. I love that the author found inspiration for its creation while reading Lithuanian alphabet books to her son. It is ever-fascinating what inspires writing! 

The research is quite extraordinary. Ms. Heck explores 69 languages to find the names of 26 animals. Each one of them begins with the same letter, but is different from their corresponding English word. The languages are global: some are non-Roman and some with alternate systems of writing.  

"The letter A is for “Anu in Igbo, Ari in Turkish, Aamoo in Ojibwe, and Abelha in Portuguese,” all of which translate to bee in English." 

Ms. Heck is a printmaker. For this book, she has created black-and-white scratchboard artwork placed on bold backgrounds. Textured, and accompanied by hand-lettered type by Jon Gray, they are dramatic and fascinating. I'm told that each letter is hidden somewhere on the illustrated page. I have been successful with finding some, but continue to pore over the pages to find all of them. It is a worthy pursuit in that it takes me back time and again for a closer look - all very worthwhile for such a thing of beauty. 

This is not a book designed exclusively for kids. Anyone (adults included) who has an interest in languages and sounds will find it worthy of attention. An author's note is filled with explanatory text concerning choices and spellings, even agreement over translation. All pronunciations were confirmed with a native speaker. She ends with this: 

"These languages are currently spoken by a range of more than a billion speakers to a few hundred, and the 69 languages represented in this book are only a fraction of the more than 6,500 spoken across the world."                                                                           

Here you can enjoy a visit with Ellen Heck as she talks her book: 

https://youtu.be/rhMbT0OPHUk

Readers are also invited to use publisher-supplied links to hear native or fluent speakers pronounce the animal names: 

https://www.levinequerido.com/a-is-for-bee-audio-guide