I SEE A KOOKABURRA!

Cut-paper collages depict the denizens of six different habitats, first disguised in situ and then, with the turn of the page, in the same orientations but in plain view on a white background. The phrase “I see . . . ” is completed on this second spread by the names of the animals represented and brief descriptions of what they are doing. Thumbnails of each animal appear again in the back matter with more thorough descriptions, along with discussion and location of their different habitats. An ant appears in each habitat, boosting the “I spy” appeal of the activity, and in general, this offering provides what readers have come to expect from Jenkins: eye-popping collages and accessible information about the natural world. However, there may be a hint of staleness in the air: While the animals have the lush, textured look one associates with Jenkins’s work, the habitats are much less well-developed, resulting in a flatness and skewing of perspective that distorts the relative sizes of the animals shown. Unfortunate. (Picture book/nonfiction. 4-8)