Pistes d'exploration

Determine which types of letters are missing on the first list. Predict where the children might find these missing letters.

Think about the children’s visit to the market. How did the letters get to the market? Why were the children able to pick some letters out of the garden but not others? 

Why was Z the last letter to be found? Brainstorm a list of words that begin with Z or that contain that letter.

Discuss the concept of a (nearly) wordless picture book. How do the illustrations help us understand the story? Brainstorm other titles for this book.

Use the book for a picture walk, describing the illustrations and relating the story.

Discuss how the letters are organized in the book. Can you see an analogy?

Discuss the illustrator’s style. What techniques are used to make these illustrations?

Create an illustration in the same style as the author using your own initials.

Phileas's Fortune: A Story About Self-Expression

Mots-clés

Picture book , alphabet , comic strips , cooking , illustrations (collage) , languages , wordless book

Commentaire descriptif

The kitchen cupboards are empty. So is the fridge. What are a brother and sister to do? In this wordless story, a hungry pair of siblings set out to look for all the letters they need to make themselves a healthy lunch. Their adventure takes them through their own backyard, to the local food market, into the woods and to the top of a mountain. When the two chefs return to cook their feast, they discover they can make a truly delicious meal by seasoning their consonants with a dash of a, e, i, o and u. This original approach to an alphabet book focuses on the rituals around preparing a meal, from grocery shopping to cleanup. The graphic novel format uses multiple panels of paper-cut collage in the blue-green spectrum that vividly dramatize the story. Some of the collaged elements are outlined in white for added texture. The final page showcases the entire alphabet along with a list of vocabulary words (ingredients, quest, cook, hungry, etc.) pertinent to the plot, which readers can consult if they wish to compose an accompanying text.