round the world, Graeme Base's amazing alliterative alphabet book Animalia is one of the most beloved children's picture books of all time, treasured by children and parents alike as a special reading experience.

"So extraordinary, so extravagantly illustrated, so astonishingly alliterative, so thoroughly delightful that any child who does not soon possess it may rightly feel his education has been shamefully neglected." --San Francisco Chronicle

Animalia's incredible imaginary world intrigues readers of all ages, with hidden objects and ideas on every page.

• A is for an Armored Armadillo Avoiding an Angry Alligator
• B is for Beautiful Blue Butterflies Basking by a Babbling Brook
• C is for Crafty Crimson Cats Carefully Catching Crusty Crayfish
• And the rest of the alphabet is just as much fun!

Graeme Base's work offers a color-packed palette and imagination-filled menagerie that has changed the way that children's books are illustrated. Animalia, like many of Base's books, is a vast puzzle, built with color and filled with creatures. This astonishingly original treatment of the ABCs changed the way parents and teachers imagined the books that they read to children.

Base offers a single- or double-page kaleidoscopic illustration for each letter of the alphabet and challenges the reader to find as many words beginning with that letter as possible within. Each illustration is a visual feast, and a fun way to challenge and expand your child's vocabulary.

No parent or child will ever be disappointed in getting Graeme Base's Animalia as a gift. Its colors and humor are timeless. You will smile, giggle, and laugh when reading about "Horrible Hairy Hogs Hurrying Homewards on Heavily Harnessed Horse."

Note: This is the "midi" edition of Animalia, perfect for smaller hands and bookshelf storage.