Look by Fiona Woodcock is not what I expected. When it said it was a story about a sister and brother off to the zoo, I expected a story where the items they see had that double ‘o’ to them would be accented. What there was instead of a story was just words. One word per page, in fact. There is no story. We have to lOOk at what they see. They go to the z00. They see the babOOns. And see the kangarOOs. They get balloons. The end.
The illustrations are neither abstract or realistic, yet there is no question what is happening. The colors are delightfully bright was a brush stroke look to them. They are faded, yet never dull. And they are fun. It is as simple as that. They are fun. There is nothing wrong with this book that it being put in a board book format would not fix. This is not something you would want in a hardcover. I would give this as a baby gift if it was in a fun medium to lap-size board book.
Fiona Woodcock’s whimsical style is here, as you would have seen in Poppy, Buttercup, Bluebell, and Dandy or A Dot in the Snow but it is unique as well. I think that while this is not a favorite book, I do enjoy this. This is a strong 3.5 or 4 rating. Yet, I will not reread it. I probably will not give it as is as a gift. As mentioned, I love the art and would frame them for a child’s room, classroom or for a library.