Zen ABC

In this handsome, sometimes arresting work, each letter of the alphabet is paired with a word or phrase central to Zen beliefs and accompanied by either a prose or verse fragment from Zen literature as well as a painted collage. The collages, each framed in a decorative border, incorporate a range of styles and elements, including such icons as the lotus blossom and the rising sun; realistic, almost photographic, figures and landscapes; the busy yet delicate patterns of kimono fabric; and animals sketched in the near-cartoony lines found in some contemporary Oriental art. The letters themselves are pen-and-ink renderings that pick up elements from the larger illustrations. But the book falls short of its stated claim of ``helping make accessible the world of Zen.'' To the uninitiated--and to children especially--the unconnected textual fragments will be cryptic and elusive; their relation to the featured words is often unclear. Of interest primarily to those with a grounding in Zen. All ages. (May)