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Wick, Walter
12 Reviews
(2)
4-6
Wick explores the concepts of light and color in a sophisticated yet comprehensible format. The gorgeous images of phenomena, in carefully staged everyday contexts, illustrate ideas that span degrees of difficulty, from the easy-to-observe refraction and iridescence to the more complex concepts of light waves and atomic spectra. The interplay between images and explanations encourages readers to wonder and learn. Back matter provides further information.
Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2019
(3)
K-3
Wick, master of the look-and-find book, offers the usual themed, color-drenched photo spreads, but this time each one features a flap that opens to reveal a rhyme telling readers what to search for. If there's justification for the foldout-page fad in picture books, it's a book like this. For instance, with its flap flipped, "Tree House" is a sky-high dazzler.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(3)
K-3
Vibrant double-page spreads showcase photographs of Wick's carefully composed miniature scenes. A rhymed list encourages readers to hunt for items hidden in each illustration while advancing an odd story line: a time-traveling robot, lost in space, crashes his spaceship in a princess's medieval world; a royal banquet is held, and the robot flies away. Wick's picture-puzzle compositions are as compelling as ever.
Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian
(3)
K-3
Each of the book's twelve train-themed spreads is a well-composed picture puzzle in itself. All together they represent a toy's journey: from workshop to toy store to child's bedroom then attic and yard sale--to new home. The clever conceit and attention to detail will engage readers.
Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz
(3)
K-3
Each spread features a rhyming list of items to find in the picture, with the next page showing the previous items in a larger context. The clever conceit, pirate theme, and attention to detail will engage readers, who may not be able to tear their eyes away from the quirky and remarkably detailed photographs.
Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth
(3)
K-3
Wick's picture-puzzle narrative is based on the familiar folktale "In a Dark, Dark Wood." Just as the tale progresses from outside in, each double-page spread zooms in closer and closer, moving from town to castle to stairway and so on. Readers are challenged to find items in Wick's carefully composed scenes: e.g., bats, a spiderweb, a coffin, and skulls.
Reviewer: Carrie Harasimowicz Sullivan
(3)
K-3
Rhymes tell readers what to search for--"a kettle for cooking, / a spool for thread, / and long golden locks / in a little bear's bed!"--in twelve dazzling color photo spreads featuring miniaturized tableaux devoted to Goldilocks, Cinderella, and other classic tales. Wick is in his element, especially in the last spread: a curtain call starring his cast and countless props.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(4)
K-3
A dozen themed tableaux teem with objects that children might collect, including buttons, dinosaur figures, toy cars, and stuffed animals. An uninspired verse in the margin of each busy spread lists specific objects to look for in the corresponding color photo. Some will find the pursuit mildly diverting; others will be overwhelmed and give up.
Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta
(3)
PS
Can You See What I See? series.
The I Spy! books' photographer directs his attention to preschoolers this time: his rhyming text alongside each spread asks readers to find various objects plus the book's toy-figure star: "Can you see a turtle, / scissors, / 2 spools? / Can you see Seymour / with a cart / full of tools?" The panoramas of everyday, kid-friendly objects are a feast for the eyes, whether spying or not.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(3)
K-3
A series of well-photographed double-page nightscapes includes a child's moonlit bedroom, city streets in the wee hours, and an uninhabited auto shop. A rhymed text alongside each spread lists a dozen or so items for the reader to find in each tableau. This book eschews the overwhelmingly busy style of other picture-puzzle titles in favor of unfrenetic, soothing, muted images appropriate for bedtime.
Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta
(3)
K-3
Each double-page spread contains a well-photographed tableau devoted to a kid-friendly theme, such as building blocks, playing cards, or dominoes. The rhymed text lists approximately a dozen items that the reader must find in the busy spread. What distinguishes this volume from other picture-puzzle books is its vivid color photos and the layouts, which teem with images yet aren't visually overwhelming.
Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta
(1)
4-6
Wick's elegant yet bold style of photography is ideally suited for the task of visual deception. The illusions range from simple mirror and geometric paradoxes to Escher-like visual trickery. Paired with each full-page color photo are well-matched descriptions that point the observer to key elements of the illusions. The book provides scientific concepts that are rigorous without diminishing the intrigue and fun.
Reviewer: Daniel Brabander
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
September, 1998
12 reviews
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