Halloween In Toyland

Review by Chuck LaFont for Whambamboozle
Rating:
A very exciting book visually, “Whambamboozle” has almost too much to look at! The illustrations appear to be composed using several computer programs, and they are dazzling, but the computer’s ability to pile on information results in images that are sometimes too busy to comprehend, with no central subject to focus on. The pull-tab mechanisms, too, are difficult to operate (and very easy to damage!), and are sometimes so well-hidden that the search can be irritating. Having said all that, I still love the book for its stylish brashness, its many fun surprises, such as a tiny, pull-out “Revolting Recipes” book; goulish sound effects (really!); a scratch & sniff pot of… what IS that Smell?; a hologram eyeball, a jumping spider, etc., etc. I recommend it for bright kids over 10 years and any adults who appreciate a funny gross-out and sometimes exceptional-looking paper engineering. (For the Record, the paper engineers, listed only in tiny print, are Jeff Newland andAlan Brown.)