C Is For City
illustrated by Pat Cummings
Boyds Mills Press, 2002
ISBN: 978-1-59078-013-8

From the book

"B is for butcher or
breakfast with bagels
or block-party bands
out on hot summer nights.

C is for city or
cabbies named Clarence
or cool cats who chat
under boulevard lights..."

from C Is for City
© 1995 by Nikki Grimes

Teaching Guides
There are teaching guides available for this book. Click here.

Reviews
"City is the operative word in this hustling, bustling, urban ABC book...The rhymes themselves are quite clever and packed with vocabulary-expanding images. Each illustration is a hearty slice of urban life, with all its intersecting dramas and scenes within scenes...Certainly city children will identify with the book, but any child should find in its busy illustrations much worth discussing or poring over alone." Booklist

"From A to Z, rhythm and alliteration effectively describe the joys of a city. The rhyming text is accompanied by highly detailed illustrations in glowing neon colors, depicting a pristine New YorkCity. Additional items that start with the featured letter fill each page and are carefully listed in the back of the book. Both text and art create a finding game in this cleverly conceived book." HornBook

"This well-thought-out tour takes kids from art shows to apartments...to zoos and zillions of churches...High energy illustrations." LA Times

"New York City is celebrated in an exuberant alphabet...Brilliant, realistic paintings...A must for early readers, city dwellers or not." Children's Book Review Service

Awards
100 Titles for Reading and Sharing