Where in the wild? Ear-tickling poems by David M. Schwartz and Yael Schy, eye-tricking photos by Dwight Kuhn - review

... and I want to thank you guys for that extremely long cut-line. Man! I didn't even put in the subtitle, "Camouflaged creatures concealed... and revealed."

Given all that up-front verbage, you know I wouldn't even bother to review this book if it weren't really neat. So, I guess you can infer... that... it is. Hm. Not setting this up too well, am I.

Ok. Each two-page spread is really a three-page spread, with a page-size fold-out. On the left we have a sweet (though, if I may, not terribly inspired) poem, and on the right there is a beautiful full-bleed nature photo. If you look closely, you will find the naturally camouflaged animal that is hiding in plain sight. If you can't see the animal, the page lifts away to reveal the same photo with everything but the animal greyed-out. The fold-out also reveals text about the animal, written at about a third-grade level.

Realistically, these fold-outs are too fragile for our school library, and I don't know how long it'll last at the public library. Our copy hasn't circulated even once, and there are already unintentional creases where it has been closed hurriedly. But Where in the Wild? would make a terrific gift for any kid who likes animals or puzzles.