Who's Hiding?
By Satoru Onishi
Kane/Miller Book Publishers; $14.95
31 pp.; ISBN: 978-1-933605-24-1

In this playful picture book, Satoru Onishi offers young readers more than a story, he offers them a bit of a mental workout disguised as fun that'll keep them guessing for 31 pages. Who's Hiding? presents puzzle after puzzle, all tailored to the pint-sized set and designed to tap memory and observation skills.

To set the stage, Onishi shows readers eighteen stout little animals arranged in neat columns and rows spread across two pages, the positions of which remain the same from page to page. On the first page, each animal is named, so kids can become familiar with animals they may not know (my own toddler looked at the rhinoceros -- "What animal is that?" I asked. "Horn!" she shouted. "Yes, it has a horn, but the animal is called a rhino." Yeah, we still have some work to do…). Onishi's clean and rounded forms make up a whimsical illustrative style characterized by the critters' especially noticeable eyes.

Then, the fun starts. As you turn each page, the author challenges the reader with a new question. Who's hiding means the background color has changed to match that of one or more of the animals, leaving nothing more than eyes and spots, stripes, or horns visible. Other pages ask young readers to look closely to determine who's crying, who's sleeping, and even who's backwards. (Just in case there are pages on which you're not sure, there's an answer key on the very last page.) Simple queries in a repetitive style make it easy for kids to jump right in, going along with the game from the very beginning of the book.

Who's Hiding? is great for young readers. The absence of a traditional storytelling structure in the book means you and your child can put down the book any time interest wanes, and feel free to pick it up again without having to worry about losing your place. The strong (but very subtle) emphasis on the important concepts little kids need to know makes Who's Hiding? a sort of stealth-learning opportunity. By the end of the book, young readers will have used their ability to observe and remember in order to answer questions about animals, colors, facial expressions and moods, and appearances. Honestly, the game-like Who's Hiding? even draws adults in -- it may be hard for you not to jump in and name all the animals when "the lights go out" and Onishi asks readers "Who's hiding?" and all you and your child see are eighteen pairs of eyes against a black background staring back at you from the page.

According to the publisher's website, illustrator Satoru Onishi was hiding when they asked for biographical information. The book was originally published in Japan and is now available for the first time in English and Spanish by Kane/Miller. Who's Hiding? is a great choice for one-on-one or very small group reading, an energetic and engaging choice that teaches through entertainment.