A Pioneer AlphabetBy: Mary Alice Downie Illustrator: Mary Jane Gerber Series: ABC Our Country A is for Abigail and Anna, Zebediahs two sisters. He is making them an alphabet book. From B, which stands for bandalore, a forerunner of the yoyo, H for the hornbook that taught children to spell, and on through the pigeons that blackened the sky, to the uniform that Papa wore when he defended the king, right through to X for the eXhaustion of parents who are homesteading.