Universal Uncle

         Welcome to the April A to Z Blog Challenge in which we spend the month blogging our way through the alphabet!  My theme this year is Relief Printed Alphabet Squared, an alphabet of alphabets illustrated with relief block prints.  Even if you’re just joining now, it’s not too late to find out what it’s all about here.

      We’ll start U with another primer, The Universal Primer of 1846.  It’s illustrated with very simple wood block prints, and U is for Uncle, bestowing a book upon a lucky nephew.  Some of the illustrations are a bit crude, but V’s Vulture is really quite nice.  

(Should I be concerned that I seem to be featuring a disproportionate number of vultures?  They've already shown up at B, G, I, P, and R.)

        But while we’re on the subject of uncles, how about Uncle Buncle’s A.B.C.?  Uncle Buncle illustrates his alphabet with large, detailed, hand-colored wood block prints that include subjects representing multiple letters in each scene.  Here U us for United, in a verse that also includes the words Veterans, Well-trained, and Xenophon.  As a contrast to this martial scene, I have chosen to share the page that includes Q for Quaker, R for Ride, S for Sun, and T for Trees.  Much more peaceful and pleasant - downright utopian.

        The Uncle Frank’s Series has a Funny Alphabet, in which the illustrations are a sort of font of letters formed from people, somewhat like the one back at F.  The rhymes that go along with the letters don’t always seem to bear a lot of relation to what the people are doing, although some seem more appropriate than others.  U lists “Uniform, Union, and Unicorn,” which really doesn’t seem to have anything to do with anything.  Q is Quit, which also seems a little random, but I picked it because I like the way the character crosses his leg over to make the tail.  The J, however, is Jemima Mermaid, which the picture bears out.  I love that she’s the only one given a special anatomical dispensation to form her letter.  

(Besides, of course, I’m always happy to sneak in a magical being.)

        The moral of U is United we stand; divided we tear each other down.

        Riddle of the day: which letters are the most utilitarian?

        So, do you have a particularly funny uncle or aunt?

[Pictures: Uncle, Vulture, wood block prints from The Universal Primer, 1846 (Images from Toronto Public Library);

United, Quaker, hand-colored wood block prints from Uncle Buncle’s A.B.C, 1841 (Images from The British Library);

U, J, Q, hand-colored wood block prints from Uncle Franks’ Series Funny Alphabet, 1850-64 (Images from University of California).]