Review by Booklist Review
K-Gr. 3. Not your typical alphabet book, this uses the military alphabet, which designates a distinctive word to stand for each letter to minimize misunderstandings during verbal communication. The large-format volume illustrates each letter with its corresponding U.S. Navy signal flag and a scene from the American armed forces. The words representing the letters range from Alpha to Zulu. Other words beginning with same letter appear in the caption: Tango / A tank thunders across the terrain and Foxtrot / Foot soldiers wear bulletproof flak jackets. In an appended author's note, Demarest discusses the history and purpose of the military alphabet. Younger children will probably be most interested in the many colorful illustrations of military personnel and equipment. Composition and subject matter are varied and dynamic, contributing to the vivid sense of urgency and engagement in many of the scenes. --Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2005 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-4-This brightly colored picture book introduces young readers to the International Communications Alphabet (ICA), which is used by the military and aviation industry. Each page presents the special ICA word and signal flag representing a letter along with a realistic illustration and one line of descriptive alliterative text using the featured letter. Packed with action and military terms, the text can be somber ("Unidentified American soldiers lie in rest at the Tomb of the Unknowns") and also controversial ("The Navy deploys a destroyer to help defend world peace"). Done in pastels, the illustrations pop right off the pages and depict many aspects of the military from soldiers and marines to medical personnel and journalists. An author's note provides information about the ICA, but children old enough to be curious about this subject will probably want more details and anecdotes. Still, this unique alphabet book will capture the attention of youngsters with military connections or interests.-Julie Roach, Watertown Free Public Library, MA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Primary) Demarest adds to his boy-friendly series of concept books (Firefighters A to Z, rev. 7/00) with this alphabetic tribute to the armed forces. For each letter, the author-illustrator includes both the International Communications Alphabet-designated word and the U.S. Navy's color-coded signal flag. The vigorous pastel illustrations are action-filled and robust enough to put hair on your chest; each is accompanied by a tersely no-nonsense sentence that gives a context for the picture while using as many words beginning with the relevant letter as possible (for ""N, November"": ""A Nuclear Class submarine navigates the North Sea""). While the book makes clear that the purpose of the armed forces is, well, armed force, fighting is shown only indirectly, as in ""T, Tango,"" where ""a tank thunders across the terrain."" While the alphabetical structure might seem babyish to the kids who would be most interested in the topic, the treatment is macho enough to forestall their complaints, and the signal flags and ICA words offer enticing possibilities for code-making. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Demarest explores, through dramatic military-related illustrations, the International Communications Alphabet (ICA). When radios started to be used in combat, it soon became clear that letters alone might be misinterpreted, hence the substitution of words and the birth of the ICA (the Navy added their own bit of clarity with signal flags, also represented by Demarest). Here are our old friends Alpha Beta Charlie, but also Hotel and Juliet, Oscar, Romeo, and Victor, and not to forget Whiskey (clarity, sure, but also a touch of whimsy and mischief). Demarest avoids any jingoism, concentrating instead on the sheer energy of military situations, even their melodrama: check out the German shepherd on the K-9 patrol; the artwork clangs with vibrancy. He keeps the text to a minimum, offering just enough to support the spectacular art. Exciting stuff for kids in the military state of mind, not to mention a good workout for the memory. (Picture book. 6-10) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
