ABCs on Wings

PreS-Gr 2--"Aa is for ace" and "Bb is for biplane" in this retro-style alphabet book that is all about aviation. Each letter is displayed in both upper- and lowercase, and paired with an item or term relating to flight. The bold illustrations are simple yet whimsical, and the color palette dominated by teal, red-orange, golden yellow, and black translates nicely to depictions ranging from Kitty Hawk to a rocket. Words and concepts vary from simple and familiar--F is for fuel, J is for jet--to more complex ones, likely to spark further questions and conversation from young readers: U is for U.F.O.; V is for vanished; and X is for "X axis," paired with an engineering blueprint image. The bright colors and popular theme will appeal to children interested in flight. VERDICT A smart addition for elementary collections with frequent requests for airplane books.--Whitney LeBlanc, Staten Island Academy, NY

Olivera makes a polished and assured debut with this aeronautical alphabet book whose crisp, clean digital images, while not explicitly retro, still evoke a Pan Am-era chicness. Most spreads feature two well-paired letters/words--at sea under a pale yellow sky, an aircraft carrier covers both "Cc is for carrier" and "Dd is for deck." Olivera also includes glancing references to aviation history ("Kk is for Kitty Hawk"), navigation, and interplanetary travel: in a humorous rural night scene, a grazing cow is shown wide-eyed under the beam of a UFO. On the facing page, for V, the cow has "vanished." Ages 3-7. Agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (July)