Every Little Letter

This message of friendship, though oft told, bears repeating, especially for the youngest readers.

K-Gr 3--Each letter of the alphabet, personified with a face, is depicted surrounded by a wall in a city where they never intermingle: "The H's had built the walls around their city long ago to protect themselves." That all changes when an intrepid lowercase h finds a gap in the wall and meets a lowercase i. As their hands join, the pair makes "something extraordinary." Color bursts from the following full-page spread with the two letters jumping for joy as a speech bubble features "hi." The H seals up the wall again and as the small h misses her new friend, she sends paper airplane messages over the wall. Soon, an airplane goes astray and lands within another letter's walls and there is much intermingling. There is subtle humor such as the x meeting the o, improving games of tic-tac-toe. When the h looks at the letters d and n upside down, or up, the lowercase letters meet up on top of the walls to form the word together and begin to break down the walls for good. Soon, there is courage, kindness, and then Love.The pen-and-ink drawings feature black outlines and soft organic colors; the letter characters are adorable. VERDICT Unity and division are themes rich for exploration in this story of alphabet letters separated by fear and complacency. It will grow upon children and adults with each reading.--Ramarie Beaver, formerly at Plano P.L., TX

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

This smartly executed fable about embracing difference imagines 26 villages--one representing each letter of the Latin alphabet. The villages are divided by walls, and the letters who live within them prefer it that way: "They knew other letters lurked outside. Different letters." Underwood (Outside In) begins with a village of Hs; newcomer Ruiz draws a bustling town square full of H-themed vignettes: a hamburger store, a hat store, and myriad speech balloons featuring the same boring greeting: "H." Secretly, a young lower-case h longs for more and, encountering a small i through a hole in the wall, creates a word: "hi!" Though the adults find out and try to end the socialization, the open-hearted young letters, through paper airplane-sent missives, learn the riches of word-making and set about dismantling walls. Ruiz creates sweet, appealing letters against backgrounds of brightly colored wash. Using letters as characters creates opportunities for pun-making ("the y's finally got some answers"); more importantly, though, it offers a neutral, easy setting to underline how diversity leads to strength. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Erin Murphy, Erin Murphy Literary. Illustrator's agent: Molly O'Neill, Root Literary. (Aug.)

Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

An Indie Next List Selection 

"Expressive . . . Bright . . . Even pre-readers will recognize letters set in bold, big shapes, enabling caregivers to incorporate early-literacy lessons into the read-aloud experience. This message of friendship . . . bears repeating, especially for the youngest readers. " —Kirkus

"This [is a] smartly executed fable about embracing difference, [offering] a neutral, easy setting to underline how diversity leads to strength." —Publishers Weekly

With so many books out there about coming together, this one goes beyond to incorporate the alphabet and word-learning, as well as the importance of listening to young people. [The] cuteness helps deliver the empathetic message for our youngest readers. —Shelf Awareness