Book review: Where's Spot?

Book # 8

Book Image:

Bibliographic Citation:

Where's Spot?

By Eric Hill. Illus. by author.

1980. 20 pg. Putnam. $7.99. (9780399240461)

Age Group:

PreS – K.

Genre:

Fiction

Awards:

None listed.

Topics/Issues:

Animals

ELS promoted:

Print motivation, narrative skills, vocabulary

Format:

Board book

Author/Illustrator sites:

http://www.funwithspot.com/

Categorization Tags:

Hill

Annotation:

A mother dog finds eight other animals while looking for her lost puppy.

Reactions/Observations:

It’s time for dinner and Sally, Spot’s mom, cannot find Spot anywhere! Sally looks for Spot in various places all over the house. Every place she looks, she meets another animal who tells her he isn’t there. She looks behind doors, inside clocks, under beds, in pianos, under the stairs, in a closet, in boxes, under rugs, but finally finds Spot inside a picnic basket. Each double spread page has a lift up flap so readers can look for Spot with Sally. The illustrations are simple and bright. Each image consists of Sally and the location she is searching. The questions identify the objects and places Sally is searching.

I have read this in toddler story time and it’s always a hit. The kids are surprised each time I lift a flap to reveal Spot isn’t there. They also enjoy identifying the animal who is hidden inside instead. Where’s Spot? was originally published as a picture book in 1980, but was later published as a board book in 2000. The only difference between the picture book and board book format is its change in size and sturdiness of its pages. The book is ideal for sharing with an individual child so that they are able to open the flaps to search for Spot by themselves, but can be easily enjoyed in a group setting like story time. The sentences are short and have between 5-6 words each, asking the reader about Spot’s location. The discussion created by the dialogue engages toddlers. When Sally encounters the other animals, their presence also prompts discussion about the animal inside. Both questions and animal discussion are great for object identification which promotes another early literacy skill: vocabulary. The board book format also promotes print motivation by allowing younger children to handle the pages without danger of damaging the book. The board book format allows a younger fan base to enjoy the Sally’s search for her pup as well as helping the 0-4 audience better understand the concept of books.