The Book with a Hole

K-Gr 3—As he did in Press Here (Chronicle, 2011), Tullet does an exemplary job of getting children to engage in imaginative play. Each black-and-white spread in this oversize book has a 5½-inch hole cut out of the center, which becomes the focal point. The text consists of questions that the artist poses to readers, encouraging their participation and prompting creative thinking. On the "What are you going to feed it?" page, the picture shows a three-eyed monster's face drawn around its large open mouth while it holds a knife and fork. "Who's the king of the castle?" allows children the opportunity of putting their faces through the hole and immediately becoming royalty with a crown and jewels. Other pictures invent games to play, including basketball with the hole as the hoop and a racetrack with an invitation to run a finger along the zigzagging line without falling through the hole. The large, childlike illustrations contribute to the interactivity, even suggesting some 3-D elements.—Maryann H. Owen, Racine Public Library, WI