The Alphabet Keeper (Flyaway Alphabet) - Hardcover

The Alphabet Keeper is a grouchy old lady who keeps all her letters locked up in a cage in a dark room. A burst of compassion compels her to clean their cage one day, and given the opportunity, the letters escape hastily. The Alphabet Keeper chases after them and quickly discovers how resourceful those letters can be, given space to move about freely. They take refuge in a park and when the keeper sneaks up on them, the "p turns upside down and the park becomes bark," leaving a little dog to chase the keeper away. When the Alphabet Keeper comes up with a plan, the t turns it into a plant. "'Stupid plant!' she yells, and kicks it. Then p and l break away, and the plant turns into an ant," who wanders off quietly. Mary Murphy's clever story and illustrations feature the temperamental lady, dressed all in gray and sporting thick, black, angry eyebrows, constantly screaming, shouting, kicking, and throwing things. Fittingly, given her poor attitude, she's relentlessly foiled by the agile, flying letters, who've clearly paid attention to their spelling lessons and might be quite good at Scrabble Junior. In fact, this funny little book is likely to give young spellers a boost of interest and creativity in the classroom, and that can only be a good thing. (Ages 4-8) --Jennifer Lindsay

Mary Murphy is the author and illustrator of several picture books. This is her first picture book for Knopf.