The day Beatrice finally learns how to spell her name is the day she discovers her passion: spelling. Her grandma, Nanny Hannah, spells words for Beatrice all day long, explaining that she pictures them in her head to spell them right. Beatrice tackles "kindergarten." Success! Nanny Hannah calls Beatrice her "Spelling Bea." Beatrice begins noticing things, like the silent "e" at the end of some words, and how two short words can make one long one, like "sidewalk." She notices (and corrects) misspellings, too. But she can't find anyone else to share her interest at school until she gets the idea to transform her turn at "Show and Tell" into "Show and Spell." Her presentation about her T-A-R-A-N-T-U-L-A named Rose is not only a hit, but inspires a spelling frenzy. Cari Best's unusual, inspired story (that does, indeed, include letter-writing at the end) is perfectly paired with Giselle's Potter's entertaining, offbeat illustrations. (Ages 5-8)

Beatrice wants to write the kind of letters that start with "Dear Somebody," but she only knows how to write letters like A B C T E R I E. Then her Nanny Hannah teaches her how to put the letters together to spell words, and Beatrice takes off on a spelling spree. She decides to start a Spelling Club at school, but no one signs up because spelling is B-O-R-I-N-G. In fact, the class decides to go on a spelling strike! Then Beatrice has a lulu of an idea and turns show-and-tell into show-and-spell starring her pet T-A-R-A-N-T-U-L-A—and soon, in this picture book by Cari Best, everyone has caught the spelling bug.