Walk This World

K-Gr 3—Each spread is supposed to represent a different area of the world. Only the first one is specifically identified as New York City. Youngsters are left to determine the others on their own by examining the busy pages for clues. Whether or not they can do that is dependent on their prior knowledge of a country, which calls into question the audience for this book. Lift-the-flap titles do not usually attract an older elementary crowd, and younger children will be lost unless the book is used one-on-one. Some of the flaps provide clues, such as the samovar in the Russian spread, while others do not. The 80 flaps in the mixed-media illustrations will prove problematic in library circulation. There is no glossary to explain capoeira dancers, and having one's country characterized as being inhabited by "relaxed beach bums" is also questionable. The book is visually attractive, the rhyme schemes are (usually) acceptable, but it's not a worthy library purchase.—Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ