PINWHEEL

This interactive book uses a spin dial to create dazzling visual effects.

Yoon sets up various scenes on double-page spreads, such as a field of sunflowers, sea life underwater and a sky full of hot air balloons. Readers spin the dials on the left-hand side of the page, or the right on the verso, to activate the dynamic element. A pinwheel spins on the cover, the vent of a train turns, and fireworks explode. A lovely surprise is the appearance of a carousel horse’s head out of the top of the page as readers look down at the merry-go-round from above and the wheel turns. The dial is easy to spin, and interactive components look relatively sturdy. Yoon’s graphic images, in carnival colors, are simultaneously bold and detailed. She wisely does not try to impose a narrative on these tableaux, so the text merely presents rhyming couplets to set the scene and inspire awe. “Sparkling, spinning, lights freewheeling. / Rainbows bursting, night pinwheeling!” 

As they did with Yoon’s Kaleidoscope (2012), youngsters will enjoy giving this one a whirl.