The Letters Are Lost
Lisa Campbell Ernst. Puffin Books, $5.99 (32pp) ISBN 978-0-14-055663-6
PW called this ABC primer featuring wooden alphabet blocks ""inviting and stimulating."" Ages 2-6. (Jan.)
Details
Reviewed on: 01/04/1999
Genre: Children's
- Amazon
- Apple Books
- Barnes & Noble
- Bookshop
- Share
- Tweet
- Copy Link
More By and About this Authorchevron_right
- STELLA LOUELLA'S RUNAWAY BOOKLisa Campbell ErnstStella Louella is on a mission to find her missing library book, and gathers all of its various readers in her search (her brother who left it by the mailbox, to the mailman who left it with a Continue reading »
- THE THREE SPINNING FAIRIES: A Tale from the Brothers GrimmLisa Campbell ErnstErnst's (Goldilocks Returns) wry text and busy pictures contribute equally to the humor of this rollicking retelling. Sporting three pigtails that stick Continue reading »
- HANNAH MAE O'HANNIGAN'S WILD WEST SHOWLisa Campbell ErnstPacking a pencil and pastel inks, Ernst (Stella Louella's Runaway Book) rustles up a tale fit for any cowgirl—urban or otherwise. The heroine's Continue reading »
- GOLDILOCKS RETURNSLisa Campbell Ernst"Fifty years after vandalizing the Three Bears' house, Goldilocks clearly has some issues to resolve as she sets about doing some unsolicited home improvements on the trio's Continue reading »
- WAKE UP, IT'S SPRING!Lisa Campbell ErnstErnst (Sam Johnson and the Blue Ribbon Quilt ) finds a nifty hook for a familiar subject: Spring is really a chain of wake-up calls. First the sun rouses the Continue reading »
- THE TURN-AROUND, UPSIDE-DOWN ALPHABETLisa Campbell ErnstMany alphabet books transform the 26 letters into people, places or things; Ernst (Stella Louella's Runaway Book ), however, gives the idea a new Continue reading »
- Sylvia Jean, Scout SupremeLisa Campbell ErnstThe spirited star of Sylvia Jean, Drama Queen returns, determined to earn a Good-Deed Badge. She vows she'll take care of an ailing neighbor, but her Continue reading »
- Zinnia and DotLisa Campbell ErnstHaughty hens Zinnia and Dot really ruffle each other's feathers. Each proclaims herself the most beautiful hen in the coop and insists that her own nest of eggs is the most exquisite. When a hungry Continue reading »
- Stella Louella's Runaway BookLisa Campbell ErnstFrom the start of this cheerful cumulative tale, Ernst (Bubba and Trixie) gives youngsters crowded spreads chock-a-block with amusing particulars. Cereal spills from an overturned box, macaroni Continue reading »
- Little Red Riding HoodLisa Campbell Ernst""In this witty version of the classic fairy tale, set among America's amber waves of grain, Grandma drives a tractor and doesn't think much of pesky predators,"" said PW. Ages 5-10. Continue reading »
- The Gingerbread GirlLisa Campbell ErnstErnst (Sylvia Jean, Drama Queen) offers a spry takeoff on the tale of the hapless Gingerbread Boy, starring ""his younger, wiser sister."" Here, the woman and her husband, ""lonelier than before,"" Continue reading »
- When Bluebell SangLisa Campbell ErnstBluebell is no ordinary cow; this bovine beauty has an amazing singing voice. Farmer Swenson takes her to perform in town, where a nasty talent scout discovers her. Big Eddie lures Bluebell (and Continue reading »
- Miss Penny and Mr. GrubbsLisa Campbell Ernst``As ye sow, so shall ye reap'' could be the moral of this engaging picture book. For 48 years, Miss Penny's prizewinning vegetable garden has been the envy of sour neighbor Mr. Grubbs. But Grubbs Continue reading »
- When Bluebell SangLisa Campbell ErnstA singing cow one-ups a greedy agent in his attempts to exploit her musical abilities. Ages 3-6. Continue reading »
- Squirrel ParkLisa Campbell ErnstErnst's ( Walter's Tail ) latest picture book scores a victory for conservationists, nonconformists--and rodents everywhere. Stuart, son of Springdale's resident architect and developer, is at odds Continue reading »
- The Letters Are Lost: A Picture Book about the AlphabetLisa Campbell ErnstAlphabet blocks and other toy-chest habitues star in this pleasingly designed ABC primer, which opens with the wooden cubes carefully arranged in a wagon. ""But time passed. First one block Continue reading »
- The Luckiest Kid on the PlanetLisa Campbell Ernst``Every morning, Lucky woke up saying, `I wonder what lucky things will happen today?'... If he caught a fish when he and his grandfather went fishing... Lucky knew it was because he was named Continue reading »
- Zinnia and DotLisa Campbell ErnstTwo rival hens must put aside their differences to solve a problem; PW noted, ``Children will enjoy the action scenes and the bickering biddies.'' Ages 2-6. Continue reading »
- Ginger JumpsLisa Campbell ErnstA circus dog longs for a home with a family; PW said, ""There has seldom been a more personable canine in or out of a circus tent."" Ages 3-7. Continue reading »
- Bubba and TrixieLisa Campbell ErnstErnst (Ginger Jumps) turns out a syrupy story with an obvious and sententious ending. Until he meets Trixie, a ladybug who can't fly, timid caterpillar Bubba refuses to venture beyond the parsley Continue reading »
- The Luckiest Kid on the PlanetLisa Campbell Ernst""Ernst's sage commentary on the correlation between attitude and experience comes delightfully gift-wrapped, with well-timed comic writing and rounded, pastel cartoons glistening with good humor,"" Continue reading »
- Goldilocks ReturnsLisa Campbell ErnstFifty years after vandalizing the Three Bears' house, Goldilocks clearly has some issues to resolve. Nagged by guilt, she buys some groceries, straps on a tool belt and heads for ""the deep, dark Continue reading »
- Nattie Parsons' Good Luck LambLisa Campbell ErnstWhen hard times beset Nattie's grandfather's farm, he decides they must sell some of their sheep, keeping only those whose wool is best. Clover, Nattie's special ""good-luck'' lamb, has the worst Continue reading »
- The Rescue of Aunt PansyLisa Campbell ErnstWhen Russell the cat receives a new toy mouse, Joanne the mouse mistakenly identifies the plaything as her dear Aunt Pansy. She valiantly drags the toy away from Russell, only to discover her Continue reading »
- Ginger JumpsLisa Campbell Ernst``For as long as Ginger could remember, the circus had been her home.'' But it isn't enough for this pooch, who craves love--not the limelight--and longs for what she has only heard about: ``dogs Continue reading »
- Little Red Riding HoodLisa Campbell ErnstThese are desperate times for big bad wolves-heroines just don't act dainty and frightened anymore. In this witty version of the classic fairy tale, set among America's amber waves of grain, Grandma Continue reading »
- How Things Work: In the YardLisa Campbell ErnstGraph paper%E2%80%93style backgrounds emphasize the schematic approach to nature that Campbell-Ernst uses to explain how different items and creatures%E2%80%94such as birds, butterflies, rocks, and Continue reading »
- The Gingerbread Girl Goes Animal CrackersLisa Campbell ErnstWhen Gingerbread Girl, who matched wits with a fox in The Gingerbread Girl, opens a box of animal crackers, the animals take off running, and each cracker recites a variation on a snappy, Continue reading »
PW EDITORS’ PICKS FOR
THE BEST NEW BOOKS
PW EDITORS’ PICKS FOR THE BEST NEW BOOKS
Featured Children's Reviews
The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest
Aubrey Hartman
Clare, the undead fox of Deadwood Forest, is cast as a monster by the local children who gather each Halloween around the forest’s edge to chant about how he “waits to feast/ On Continue reading »
Knucklehead
Tony Keith Jr
Poet and educator Keith (How the Boogeyman Became a Poet) delivers a poignant, hip-hop-fueled collection of poetry that’s equal parts memoir, love letter, and rallying cry to Continue reading »
Little Sanctuary
Randy Boyagoda
Sixteen-year-old Sabel is puzzled by tonight’s family meal, which seems to be a special spread of her and her four siblings’ favorite foods. Sickness and savagery have toppled Continue reading »
When I Hear Spirituals
Cheryl Willis Hudson
Willis Hudson movingly exalts the power of African American spirituals in a lyrics showcase that pairs existing verses with feelings they can evoke. On the first page, a Black Continue reading »
chevron_right
