Stephanie Owen Reeder: Who Needs Words?

By Stephanie Owen Reeder
Updated April 27 2017 - 10:08am, first published 6:42pm

The power of the visual is never more obvious than in picture books that communicate without words. The images in Norman Messenger's An Artist's Alphabet (Walker Studio. 48pp. $29.99) will appeal to adults as well as children. It is not just a teaching alphabet for the very young but, like Graeme Base's classic Animalia, showcases the artist's abilities, allowing Messenger to indulge his artistic flair.