I AM EYES, NI MACHO

In Kenya, we learn on page one, ""Ni Macho means 'I am awake' but it says 'I am eyes,'"" and this is a list-cum-picture album of what is seen by a Kenyan child upon waking up in the morning. However, the pictured items--which are paired (presumably) for alliteration--include many natural sights that might be encountered anywhere: sunflowers and skies, stars and starlings, sun and sand, etc. There are some typically African animals too--elands and elephants, for example--and Hogrogian tries (unsuccessfully) to give her vacuous pictures an African look by bordering them with colored bands that could conceivably resemble African textiles. But as her dull compositions don't invite a second glance--and sometimes feature animals not mentioned in the text (most prominent in the illustration for ""I see crabs and coral"" are two blimpy-looking fish), and as the list itself (13 pairings) tells next to nothing about Kenya, there is nothing here to feed eyes, mind, or soul.