Pay Close Attention!

For those of you with young children, you'll understand my awe at how amazing my son's memory is and the details he notices when we're driving in the car and of course, among the illustrations in the books we read.

Of course, my argument for this is that I'm too focused On the Road to notice the dog in the back of the van or too busy concentrating on reading the words in the story to see the small frogs hiding in the pictures (Paul Needs Specs).

Look closely, and you will discover many things in picture books that you might otherwise miss. Spend a day looking at the pictures alone and ignore the text. You may find a new appreciation for the stories that can be told without words.

From England
On the Road
by Susan Steggall


From Australia
Paul Needs Specs
Written by Bernard Cohen
Illustrated by Geoff Kelly


From Japan
Animal Faces
Written by Kyoko Toda
Photographs by Akira Satoh


From Germany
Something is Not Quite Right!
by Ralf Butschkow

From Japan
Who's Hiding?
by Satoru Onishi


From Mexico
Half of an Elephant
by Gusti


From South Korea
Yellow Umbrella
Illustrated by Jae Soo Liu
Music composed by Dong Il Sheen


From Australia
Fly, Little Bird
by Tina Burke

Now, see if you can't find all twenty-two frogs hidden in the illustrations of Paul Needs Specs, or if you can tell me what your favorite animal is made of from Half of an Elephant (mine is the giraffe made from a tape measure). Happy Hunting!