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238th out of 314 books
—
23 voters
All Around The Town
63 pages
Published
1948
by Harpercollins
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This book is like a collection of snapshots of urban life from 1948. It was an enjoyable book to read, hear out loud and look at - verse and illustrations work together well. McGinley's paintings have an energy that often works well. The best illustrations are U for umbrella and W with a night skyline; runners-up are D with the milk delivery, J for the jaywalker, Q for quietness on a snowy street, and R for restaurant where children are seated.
I don't know why, but I was not expecting an alphabet book when I opened the cover for this one.
Each letter has a little poem and illustration.
I like the poem for Q with a wintery city street scene:
"Q is for the Quietness
Of Sunday avenues
When Silence walks the city
In her pretty velvet shoes;
When trucks forget to rumble,
And from steeples everywhere
The bells of Sunday morning
Ring their questions in the air."
The poem for G doesn't feel quite as timeless:
"G's the gay Good-Humor man
Who gads about the...more
Each letter has a little poem and illustration.
I like the poem for Q with a wintery city street scene:
"Q is for the Quietness
Of Sunday avenues
When Silence walks the city
In her pretty velvet shoes;
When trucks forget to rumble,
And from steeples everywhere
The bells of Sunday morning
Ring their questions in the air."
The poem for G doesn't feel quite as timeless:
"G's the gay Good-Humor man
Who gads about the...more
This is an alphabet book about things children see around a town. Some things are timeless like B for bus and other really date this book like D for dairy driver. I think kids might enjoy it. I thought the illustrations were nice too.
ABC book,
Caldecott honor.
Caldecott honor.
Jul 23, 2012
Mary
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
caldecott-challenge-2012
Each 2 page spread is devoted to a letter of the alphabet representing 1 thing a child might see in the city. While some things are dated, many would be relevant to children today. I like how the author incorporated each letter into the poem multiple times, which would give readers a chance to listen to the letter sound and identify the words in which it appears. Illustrations reminded me of Marc Simont.
As much as I love all the other choices of the 1949 Caldecott committee (The Big Snow, Blueberries for Sal, Juanita and Fish in the Air), this book didn't appeal to me. The illustrations were not appealing or interesting, and even though I enjoyed the text of the book, I have never quite understood how it received an award for excellence in illustration. Maybe it's just me.
Read for #nerdcott. Reviewed in Caldecott Challenge Post # 34: http://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com/...
Caldecott Honor 1949
May 01, 2013
Amanda
marked it as to-read
Apr 25, 2013
Casey
added it
Jan 02, 2013
Christine
marked it as to-read
Dec 08, 2012
Elke Erickson
marked it as to-find
Jul 14, 2012
Yinzadi
marked it as to-read
May 30, 2012
Mary
marked it as to-read
Apr 08, 2012
Rebecca Ann
marked it as to-read
Feb 27, 2012
Nikole
marked it as to-read
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McGinley was educated at the University of Southern California and at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. After receiving her diploma in 1927, she taught for a year in Ogden and then at a junior high school in New Rochelle, New York. Once she had begun to establish a reputation for herself as a writer, McGinley gave up teaching and moved to New York City, where she held various jobs. She mar...more
More about Phyllis McGinley...
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