The Zschock sisters (Journey Around Boston from A to Z) bring their series to the Big Apple, where Heather Zschock, the designer of the series, presently lives. The mallard who guided the Boston tour is replaced here by a pigeon; it appears on every page, often in costume (e.g., dressed as an orchestra conductor or wearing a fire helmet). The alphabet theme only loosely organizes the information, as alliterative sentences, not topics, appear alongside each letter. Transportation, for example, is discussed at "R": "Roebling's rope wires reach across the river"; on each spread, a large watercolor (in this case, of the Brooklyn Bridge) illustrates a detailed paragraph (here, about the construction of that bridge). An inset panel shows a related subject (the Staten Island Ferry), while in the bottom margin a detail (a subway entrance) shares space with a fun fact (the city's buses, rails and subways "transport 2.3 billion people a year all over town!"). The events of September 11 figure under "T" ("Tough times take teamwork"), where a panel showing the Twin Towers is set into a view of the Unisphere from the 1964 World's Fair, "a symbol of 'peace through understanding.' " For all the facts and details, the Zschocks also favor generalizations like "Broadway shows are now more popular than ever" and "With rowboats, hiking trails, and theater, [Central Park] offers fun for everyone"); the tone may be upbeat, but it's also bland. Ages 9-12. (May)
