T Is for Tugboat: Navigating the Seas from A to Z by Traci N. Todd and Sara Gillingham (amazon)

There are plenty of alphabet books out there, but T is for Tugboat is a handsomely designed book with a nautical theme that will appeal to any fans of boats, oceans, or maritime trivia. The color palette of red, blue, white, and tan sets off pages that list several items for each letter of the alphabet. For example, N is for Neptune, Navigate, and the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria and A is for Anchor, Ahoy, and Aground. The illustrations seamlessly combine historical photos, line drawings, and more detailed illustrations of the items that represent the alphabet. The reference librarian in me particularly appreciated the detailed pages on maritime flag code, knots, and Morse code. It would be easy to use this book as a jumping off point to further explore other related topics. There’s a mini quiz on the back flap of the book that tests the reader’s knowledge. T is for Tugboat is more sophisticated than the typical alphabet book, the publisher recommends it for ages 4-8.

There are two other books in this series, A is for Astronaut and C is for Caboose. So if you have a space buff or train hobbyist in the house, you might want to check those books out as well.

Review copy provided by Chronicle Kids Books