P Is for Pterodactyl
{{Short description|2018 picture book about irregular spellings}}
{{Infobox book
| name = P Is for Pterodactyl: The Worst Alphabet Book Ever
| image = P Is for Pterodactyl cover.jpg
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| author = Raj Haldar
Chris Carpenter
| illustrator = Maria Tina Beddia
| country = United States
| language = English
| subject =
| genre = Alphabet book
| publisher = Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
| publisher2 =
| pub_date = November 13, 2018
| media_type =
| pages = 40
| awards =
| isbn = 978-1-4926-7431-3
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|preceded_by=N/A
|followed_by=No Reading Allowed
}}
P Is for Pterodactyl: The Worst Alphabet Book Ever is a children's picture book written by Raj Haldar and Chris Carpenter and illustrated by Maria Tina Beddia.{{cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/78900-this-week-s-bestsellers-december-24-2018.html|title=This Week's Bestsellers: December 24, 2018|work=Publishers Weekly|first=Carolyn|last=Juris|date=December 21, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}} It showcases "English words with silent letters and bizarre spellings."{{cite web|url=https://www.thisisinsider.com/p-is-for-pterodactyl-book-bizarre-english-words-2018-11|title=A children's book called 'P is for Pterodactyl' features the most bizarre words in the English language|work=Insider|first=Talia|last=Lakritz|date= November 23, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}} The book was published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky on November 13, 2018.{{cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/78653-worst-alphabet-book-becomes-bestseller.html|title='Worst' Alphabet Book Becomes Bestseller|work=Publishers Weekly|first=Shannon|last=Maughan|date=November 20, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}} It peaked at number 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list in the category for children's picture books.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/12/30/picture-books/|title=Children's Picture Books|work=The New York Times|first=|last=|date=December 30, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}} It has sold more than 210,000 copies.{{cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-industry-news/article/79014-sourcebooks-launches-three-children-s-imprints.html|title=Sourcebooks Launches Three Children's Imprints|work=Publishers Weekly|first=Claire|last=Kirch|date=January 15, 2019|access-date=March 11, 2019}}
Publication
The idea for P Is for Pterodactyl originally came in 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/celebrities/lushlife-p-is-for-pterodactyl-20181115.html|title=Philly rapper Lushlife's newest project is the worst alphabet book ever|work=Philly.com|first=Nick|last=Vadala|date=November 15, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}} Following the release of his album Ritualize, rapper Raj Haldar, whose stage name is Lushlife, celebrated with his friends. A friend's child brought some alphabet flash cards with him.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/dec/03/p-is-for-pterodactyl-t-is-for-tsunami-the-worst-alphabet-book-becomes-a-bestseller|title=P is for pterodactyl, T is for tsunami: the 'worst alphabet book' becomes a bestseller|work=The Guardian|first=Alison|last=Flood|date=December 3, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}} Haldar and his friend Chris Carpenter, a software engineer, came up with the idea for the alphabet book. Artist Maria Tina Beddia joined the project at the recommendation of another mutual friend. Before the book found a publisher, there were a handful of rejections.{{cite web|url=https://www.phillymag.com/news/2019/01/29/p-is-for-pterodactyl-raj-haldar/|title=Meet Raj Haldar, the South Philly Rapper Who Co-Wrote a Delightfully Confusing Children's Book|work=Philadelphia|first=Patrick|last=Rapa|date=January 29, 2019|access-date=March 11, 2019}} Eventually, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky picked up the book. The book was published on November 13, 2018.
Reception
The book was included on The New York Times{{'}} "Standout New Picture Books" list on October 19, 2018. Maria Russo wrote: "You can curse the English language for its insane spelling rules (or lack thereof), or you can delight in it, as this raucous trip through the odd corners of our alphabet does."{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/19/books/review/parade-of-elephants-kevin-henkes.html|title=Standout New Picture Books|work=The New York Times|first=Maria|last=Russo|date=October 19, 2018|access-date=March 11, 2019}}
On November 6, 2018, a week before the book was published, a children's book website Imagination Soup praised the book on a Facebook post. The post went viral and gained over 4,000 comments. The book sold out of its first print run of 10,800 copies the day it was published.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/25/books/review/p-pterodactyl-raj-haldar-chris-carpenter-best-seller.html|title=The Story Behind 'P Is For Pterodactyl,' The Self-Described 'Worst Alphabet Book Ever'|work=The New York Times|first=Tina|last=Jordan|date=January 25, 2019|access-date=March 11, 2019}}
On December 30, 2018, the book reached number 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list in the category for children's picture books. It remained in the top ten books on that list for 18 weeks.{{cite news |title=Children's Picture Books – Best Sellers – Books – May 5, 2019 – The New York Times |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2019/05/05/picture-books/ |access-date=24 March 2021}}
Sequel
In 2020, the sequel, No Reading Allowed: The Worst Read-Aloud Book Ever (which uses word-play based on homophones, homonyms, and differences of punctuation) was released by Sourcebooks Explore.https://www.sourcebooks.com/no-reading-allowed.html
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- [https://books.sourcebooks.com/pisforpterodactyl/ P Is for Pterodactyl] at Sourcebooks