Myles Lawford. Where’s Kiwi? Scholastic (NZ), 1 November 2014, 24pp., $AU24.89/$NZ21.00 (hbk), ISBN 978-1-77543-288-3
Fans of Where’s Wally may well be attracted to this kiwi version of the activity picture book. With more than 800 things to spot, children may well be preoccupied for a long time! Young Kiwi is touring the country “from the sub-topical north to the icy south” accompanied by four of his iconic kiwi mates; Sporty Sheep, Gumboot Guy, Wacky Wizard (with apologies to Ian Channell?) and Tricky Tuatara. In each context (surfing and the beach, the big smoke of the city, a zoo, the hot pools of Rotorua, the farm, deep caves, the footie field, Welly Wood or Wellington, the snow fields, and the deep frozen south) the writer gives a challenge: where’s kiwi? At the back of the book is a double-page spread where some additional challenges are given (where children can tick off the boxes of other creatures found). For meticulous children who are fascinated by visual clutter (which as you could expect is a deliberate visual strategy), then they are bound to take great pleasure in spotting all that is to be found. Take the first page: there are 200 characters to distinguish! Where is kiwi? Recommended.
reviewed by John McKenzie
