HEART OF TEXAS

Though the alphabetic conceit doesn’t work as well for an entire state as it did for their tours of Washington, D.C. (2003), and New York City (2005), Melmed and Lessac gamely present a high-spots roundup of history, prehistory, places and annual events to give students and prospective visitors at least a taste of Texas. From “Alamo” to “Zilker Park,” “Fiestas Patrias” to the “Juneteenth Festival,” the author provides at each stop an introductory bit of doggerel and a handful of random facts—the latter scattered over broad landscapes or urban scenes painted in Lessac’s characteristic primitive style. Totally unsystematic, seldom better than superficial and sometimes trivial or jejune (A is for Alamo: “Santa Anna was a good soldier but a cruel, hated commander”), this joins the three (at least) other Texas ABCs that are currently available in having little to offer beyond regional interest. A very simple keyed map is included. (Informational picture book. 7-9)