Review Detail

This book is ambitious in scope. It introduces children to colors, shapes, patterns, and locations (i.e. under, above, to the left etc.). I read it to my toddler, and she was interested in following the black cat who shows up on nearly every page and in pointing out colors. I did experience some frustration in trying to read it to her because the narrative set-up suggests a story (i.e. starting a section with the question "Where are you hiding?") but then there are only one or two words on most pages. It left me having to fill in the blanks so that it could make sense. I don't mind being an active participant in the storytelling, but it's worth mentioning.

The illustrations felt very retro to me. The entire book is very gray/white/black with a few splashes of color and the drawings felt like they'd been taken out of books published in the sixties and seventies. There's nothing wrong with that, and my daughter was fully engaged in the book, but it certainly has a different look and feel to it than most books published today. Readers looking for bright, cheery books might look elsewhere, but readers looking for books that offer multiple educational opportunities for their children, along with delightfully vintage-feeling illustrations, might really enjoy this title.