A lift-the-flap picture album of birds—memorable for its large, folio trim size at least, if not so much for artistic quality or informational content.
As in their Out of Sight (2010), Pittau and Gervais hide technically accomplished animal portraits (some of which are small pop-ups) behind large, shaped or die-cut flaps. Each image is paired to a comment on the subject’s behavior, habitat or physical features. These comments are often unhelpful, leaving readers in the dark about just why flamingos turn pink as they age or how eating caterpillars turns a great tit’s belly yellow, for instance. The authors seldom indicate their birds’ sizes—but they do fill an entire spread with flaps of carefully detailed, seemingly-life-size-but-not-really eggs. Furthermore, though painted in bright, subtly blended colors, most of the avian portraits do not show finer details of skin or plumage, and so limited is the range of angles and poses (none are posed in flight), that the visuals tend toward monotony.
Impressive–but only at first glance. (Pop-up/nonfiction. 4-8)
