R Is for Rocket: An ABC Book

by Tad Hills, Tad Hills (Illustrator)

Overview

Learn the ABCs with Rocket, the dog who inspires kids to read and write! This irresistible alphabet book from the creator of the New York Times bestsellers How Rocket Learned to Read and Rocket Writes a Story is sure to appeal to kids, parents, teachers, and librarians.

Don’t miss the animated movie based on the bestselling Rocket books—now airing on PBS!

 
From finding acorns, to balancing on a ball, to offering a cookie and a crayon to a crow, readers will love exploring the wonderful world of Rocket and his friends. The whole cast is featured, among them the little yellow bird, the owl, Bella the squirrel, and more. Even Goose from the beloved and bestselling Duck & Goose books makes a cameo appearance! With charming and delightful scenes for every letter, here's an ode to the wondrous, mighty, gorgeous alphabet.

Take off the dust jacket to find a fun alphabet poster printed on the inside!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780553522280
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	07/07/2015
Series:	Rocket
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	649,139
Product dimensions:	10.60(w) x 9.60(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD490L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Tad Hills is the author and illustrator of How Rocket Learned to Read; Rocket Writes a Story; Duck & Goose; Duck, Duck, Goose; and Duck & Goose Go to the Beach—all New York Times bestsellers. His Duck & Goose board books include the ALA-ALSC Notable Children’s Book What's Up Duck? and the Indie bestsellers Duck & Goose Find a Pumpkin and Duck & Goose, Here Comes the Easter Bunny. His Rocket books include two leveled readers, Drop it, Rocket! and Rocket's 100th Day of School.

Editorial Reviews

06/08/2015
Having explored reading and writing in his first two picture books, Rocket the dog heads up a tour of the alphabet, starring a handful of his animal friends and featuring abundant alliteration. Hills creates sweet, gentle scenes for each letter, introducing moments of light humor (Bella the squirrel “plays in the ivy. It’s not a good idea. It makes her itch”), while touching on emotions like joy, kindness, and fear (“The waves are noisy. They make Owl nervous”). Bold type highlights the repeated letters, and Hills’s oil paint and pencil illustrations exude a quiet, soothing soulfulness throughout. Ages 3–7. (July)

Publishers Weekly

06/01/2015
PreS-Gr 1—Rocket the dog and Goose, from the "Duck & Goose" series (Random), both appear in Hills's latest picture book. As they play outside with their friends Bella the squirrel and Owl, they encounter a variety of animals whose activities are described in sentences that use alliteration. ("Rocket rests by the river in the rain./Bella sits on a stump. 'I'm glad I have this sock,' she says") Every page is given its own letter, and those letters are written in bold text when they appear at the beginning of a word. The humor is subtle; the situations playful. ("Fred frolics with fireflies in the field"; "Owl jumps for joy").The oil paint and colored-pencil illustrations include full pages and spreads, and large spot art. A cheery alphabet chart appears on the reverse side of the cover. VERDICT An endearing introduction to the alphabet.—Tanya Boudreau, Cold Lake Public Library, AB, Canada

School Library Journal

2015-04-15
Adorable Rocket the dog and his many pals (including a moonlighting Goose) return in a new story centered on the alphabet. Each alphabetic scene illustrates action in a complete sentence or two that emphasizes alliteration. The key letter in each scenario is represented in boldface type, and many sentences include both upper- and lowercase examples. It begins: "Rocket finds acorns. Owl draws an angry alligator. / Bella balances on a ball while a big blue butterfly watches." Some letter choices work better than others. Q is fairly successful: "It is quiet, and Owl is cozy under her quilt. She falls asleep quickly." On the other hand, Hills defaults to the old chestnut for tricky X: "Bella plays the xylophone." Overall, this is charming fun, and readers have come to know and love Hills' oil-and-colored-pencil characters. While each individual scene is entertaining, however, and many incorporate multiple letters, there is no apparent unifying storyline that takes readers from A to Z. One tiny nit is that owls don't sleep lying down, as depicted, but that doesn't take away from the enjoyment. The back of the jacket cover is an attractive alphabet chart. Though this lacks the originality and fizz of How Rocket Learned to Read (2010), it nevertheless reinforces the pup's positive literacy efforts. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews