Commonwealth Editions

A fact-filled, alphabetical journey through the five boroughs of the city. A pigeon serves as a tour guide of sorts, appearing on every page in either the small inset illustration or in one of the smaller spot-art drawings located along the bottom of the pages. The format works well to introduce famous landmarks and neighborhoods with descriptive alliterative sentences, such as Dragons dance by dim sum diners as an introduction to Chinatown and Gorgeous gardens grace glass-houses for commentary on the New York Botanical Garden. Succinct paragraphs of historical information are located under each full-page, highly detailed colored-pencil-and-watercolor illustration. In a much smaller type size, a one-sentence, sometimes quirky, bit of information is imparted as well, as in Many skyscrapers don't have a 13th floor. No one wants to be on an unlucky floor! This up-to-date book includes a reference to and inset illustration of the former Twin Towers under the letter T: Tough times take teamwork. The book begins with a map and a listing of the 26 landmarks showcased. The endpapers offer a different sort of New York alphabet to readers, featuring small illustrations of interesting trademark items, such as a Nathan's hot dog, a blue box from Tiffany's, and a yellow cab. A wonderful testament to a diverse city and its equally diverse residents. -School Library Journal

Washington, D.C. is "hometown" for every American. Martha Day Zschock is not only a brilliant artist, whose Journey Around books have captured readers of all ages in Boston, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and more. She is also an educator, who designed her bestselling series to teach children about our great American places. This is far more than an alphabet book. Each page is headed by an alliterative sentence that evokes an important theme - the "A" page reads, "America's anthem awakens awe" - and each page also features a paragraph of history.