The Most Magnificent Maker’s A to Z

Schools and libraries will have already enjoyed introducing the busy inventor with no name who appeared in The Most Magnificent Thing (www.cmreviews.ca/cm/vol20/no36/themostmagnicentthing.html) and The Most Magnificent Idea (www.cmreviews.ca/node/3187). The Most Magnificent Maker’s A to Z is a reprise of our maker’s world of ideas in the form of an alphabet book. It shows the little girl in the polka dot dress being observed by her rather skeptical dog and cat assistants as she strives to come up with new things.

A few examples of the entries here are:

G is for GATHERING. Don’t forget your scrap paper, ruler,
glue, pencil, paint, googly eyes, screwdriver, egg cartons,
3D printer, vacuum cleaner…
maybe just bring everything.

And

N is for NOTEBOOK.
A home for ideas that you can bring anywhere.

And

S is for STUCK.
Sometimes your idea machine is jammed
and your hands don’t know what to do next.
Don’t worry, ideas have a way of sneaking up on you
when you aren’t looking for them.

There are the same busy illustrations that we have seen in the earlier books, of a hodgepodge of items that just might provide inspiration for some kind of thingamajig. Digitally-rendered images depict the maker in her red dress brightening up the foreground coloured in soft tones of mint green, brown and grey. Many of the backdrops are rendered in strong black-and-white outline. The text uses a hand-lettered font which adds an appropriate quirkiness, although it might prove to be a challenge to some new readers.

As usual, the message is that hard work and persistence, leavened with some imagination, can result in a creative triumph. As the second-to-last entry states: “Creating is a journey. You may not have figured it out YET, but you can try again tomorrow.” The alphabet formula extends the book to the point where it becomes a bit laboured, which is why the age range suggested above moves the book out of the preschool realm.

The Most Magnificent Maker’s A to Z is not a group read-aloud but a book that could be shared with an eager kindergartner. It is also one that more confident primary readers will take to and pore over for all the messy, amusing details, and for its use as the springboard to their own maker adventures.