This extraordinary book is what childhood is made of. I would have absolutely loved this book as a child, and as an adult, I'm equally enamoured.
What's Inside? is a hard cover book with luscious retro illustration and creamy, matte pages. From the endpapers through to the back cover blurb, it's a visual treat for little eyes, but the content is equally entrancing.
Divided into five sections - What's inside your body, What's inside machines, What's inside the world of nature, What's inside buildings and It's your turn! - there's almost 90 pages of fun, with a cat, a mouse and an alien-like creature taking us a journey to explore the inner workings of the world.
Each page is superbly designed and laid out, with beautiful illustrations, speech bubbles and boxes containing fascinating text. But the coolest ting of all is the see-through pages. Here we have a picture of a young lad's head. What's inside? Just hold the page up to a light or a window and ...
Voilà! X-ray vision!
Let's take a look inside this building. What's going on in there?
Lots!
And what about this stage curtain? Are there any preparations going on behind its voluminous folds?
Why, yes! It's almost curtain time!
The last section of the book allows kids to get involved with their own drawings, which they can similarly peek at by holding up the page to a light source.
Despite its interactivity, this book is much more than an 'activity' book. It's a picture book, information book and delightful source of all things fabulous and educational. Kids will spend many hours pondering and enjoying the astonishing creativity, and parents will equally enjoy the cleverness. This book would be fabulous for homeschooling.
The Okido Studio is an arts and science magazine for kids. See more at www.okido.co.uk.
Title: What's Inside?
Author/Illustrator: Okido Studio
Publisher: Thames & Hudson, $24.95 RRP
Publication Date: 1 September 2013
Format: Hard cover
ISBN: 9780500650196
For ages: 4+
Type: Picture Book, Activity Book
