From Publishers Weekly
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The wizard of weimaraners outdoes himself in posing his
graceful canines to illustrate A through Z. The four members of a
weimaraner squad, positioned on a colorless ground and
photographed from above, form the shape of each letter. Below, a
caption enlivened by alliteration or other wordplay includes a
key word spelled out in the weimaraner-made letters (the
copyright page drolly identifies this makeshift "typeface" as
"60-point Weimaraner"). Full-page color photos face each letter:
for instance, the "G" page reads, "Fay is glamorous in her
gorgeous gloves and gown"; site, weimaraner Fay Ray is seen
decked out in a stress dress. The captions are clever, but the
photographs are no less than superb, demonstrating the range of
Wegman's wit and technical excellence. The illustration for Q,
for example, shows Fay in a crown and an elaborately trimmed robe
"standing" upright beside a throne, against a background of
deepest ruby. The campy overtones of Little Red Riding Hood and
Cinderella have vanished, ceding the field to unfettered,
non-narrative fun. All ages.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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From School Library Journal
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Grade 2 Up-Wegman's Weimaraners are back, this time in a
concept book rather than a fairy tale. Small black-and-white
photographs of dogs lying together to approximate the shape of
each letter of the alphabet face full-page, full-color photos of
one or more dogs posing to illustrate a concept starting with the
corresponding letter. As an alphabet book for youngsters, this
title is almost useless. There are no clear representations of
the letters to develop visual identification. The photographs are
unnerving, particularly the shared tongue kiss and the eerie
"rooster," a dog entirely encased in a long red sack. Questions
about the of the dogs seem almost inevitable from
children who own or long for pets. Perhaps the unusual
photographs hold some appeal for adult aficionados, but
collections for children should be stocked with the multitude of
better alphabet books.
Kathy Piehl, Mankato State University, MN
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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From Booklist ( /gp/feature.html/?docId=1000027801 )
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Gr. 5-9. If you thought Little Red Riding Hood was unusual,
wait till you see Wegman's latest picture book of doggy
dramatics. It's the alphabet he's on to now, but a primer for
children this book is not. As you might expect, the photographs
are quite bizarre--weimaraners decked out in all manner of
costumes. All are quite clear, however, and the pictures of the
letters, which Wegman's fashioned by carefully grouping his dogs,
are generally recognizable. The text is the most problematic, at
least as far as children are concerned. Many of the words and
concepts used to reinforce the letters--queasy and jester, for
example--aren't part of a preschooler's world, and Wegman's brand
of "comedy" is way beyond young children. It may be
middle-graders, younger teens, and reluctant readers who'll flip
through these photos (they'll probably ignore the text). If they
have a quirky, offbeat sense of humor, they might just have a few
laughs. Stephanie Zvirin
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