The Hidden Alphabet (2003)

The Hidden Alphabet (2003)
Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Die-cut dustjacket. Casebound, alphabet-decorated paper over boards, doublures attached as first and last pages. H225 x W210 mm. 54 unnumbered pages. Acquired from Plain Tales Books, 18 September 2022.
Photos: Books On Books Collection.

When removed, The Hidden Alphabet‘s die-cut dustjacket offers a clue to the magic about to happen.

Inside the book, white letters on a glossy black die-cut sheet name the object framed inside the cutout. But lift the black frame, and the object disappears into the uppercase letter appearing on the page underneath: the first letter of the object’s name that just disappeared.

The optical illusion created by the shifting foreground mesmerizes and will prompt a race through this abecedary to see the next bit of magic. But for the teacher or parent reading with the child, Laura Vaccaro Seeger has subtly planted another traditional feature of the alphabet book to be used in a second pass through the book. Learning the difference between lowercase and uppercase characters becomes part of the trick of lifting the flap to move from the small to the big. And for the more serious students of the alphabet and art, the magic calls attention to the metamorphic boundary between text and image

Further Reading

“Abecedaries I (in progress)“. Books On Books Collection.

“Anne Bertier“. 10 August 2022. Books On Books Collection.

“Lisa Campbell Ernst“. 12 December 2022. Books On Books Collection.

“Suse MacDonald“. 10 August 2022. Books On Books Collection

“Nicolas McDowall“. 12 December 2022. Books On Books Collection.

“Bruno Munari“. 19 August 2021. Books On Books Collection.

“Dave Pelletier“. 10 August 2022. Books On Books Collection.