Can You See What I See?: The Night Before Christmas: Picture Puzzles to Search and Solve [Hardcover]

Walter Wick (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up | Series: Can You See What I See?

Scenes from Clement Moore's 'Twas the Night Before Christmas inspire twelve elegant and fascinating compositions where readers search for dozens of intriguing hidden objects.

The first photograph, "The Night Before Christmas," features a gingerbread house, Christmas cookies, candles, bulbs, and more. "Visions of Sugarplums" is an abstract composition of Christmas confections; and "Such a Clatter!" is a dynamic explosion of objects. In "It Must Be Saint Nick," Santa is shown in shadow; and in "A Bundle of Toys," the presents in Santa's sack are revealed as a magnificent jumble. The final photograph, "Happy Christmas to All" is a beautiful, pastoral landscape, lustrous under new-fallen snow.

The original poem is printed on the endpapers.

Can You See What

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Walter Wick is the photographer of the I Spy series of books, with more than twenty-four million copies in print. He is both author and photographer of A Drop of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder, winner of the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award, and Walter Wick's Optical Tricks, which was named a Best Illustrated Children's Book by The New York Times Book Review.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic; 1 edition (October 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439769272
• ISBN-13: 978-0439769273
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 10.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,367 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Children's Books > Holidays & Celebrations > Christmas

More About the Author

When I was young I was a reluctant reader. It was hard for me to sit still and read a book. I preferred activities that got me moving, like neighborhood ball games, bike riding, skiing, sledding, skating, climbing trees, and exploring the woods in Connecticut where I grew up.

I taught also myself to draw. I became fascinated with shapes, shading, and trying to make the objects in my drawings appear to pop out in 3-D. Later I became interested in photography. I took pictures in the woods with my camera, tinkered with equipment in the darkroom, and experimented with artistic effects.

Much later I became the photographer of the I SPY books, in collaboration with writer Jean Marzollo. I did more than take the pictures. I thought of ideas, sketched ideas, collected props, made props, built sets, arranged objects, hid objects, adjusted lights, and took a picture. Then I rearranged objects and took another picture -- sometimes over and over again.

I write as well as illustrate my own books now. In A DROP OF WATER, I combine simple text with clear photographs to explain science secrets of the everyday world. In WALTER WICK'S OPTICAL TRICKS, the everyday world is turned upside down with impossible objects, phantom images, and other perplexing illusions. With the CAN YOU SEE WHAT I SEE? series, I continue the picture-puzzle tradition, taking readers on ever more amazing adventures of the imagination in their quest for hidden objects.

Happy reading!

Walter Wick

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars nicely surprised, December 15, 2005

By 

mom of 2 (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Can You See What I See?: The Night Before Christmas: Picture Puzzles to Search and Solve (Hardcover)

I bought this book through the Scholastic books sale at school. I would never have picked it out, but my son wanted it. It's one of those "Where's Waldo"-type books, with a Christmas theme. The actual Night Before Christmas poem is featured in the front of the book, with phrases from the poem on each 2-page spread.

Each spread has a list of items to search for in the photographs. The items are sometimes obvious and sometimes ingeniously hidden (in plain sight, often).

Both my kids, 5-1/2 and 3-1/2, loved this book! I was surprised at how focused they were on finding the items, and asked for it again and again.

The photos are heavy with shadows in spots, making it harder to find the items, but their young eyes picked out items I never saw!

I did a turnaround on these books, going so far as to order another in the series for them this Christmas. My older child was very adept at this; my younger child found it a little harder, but with encouragement, stayed with it.

I'd recommend it.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars another great I spy book, July 13, 2006

By 

Krista -F "Krista-F" (Connecticut) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Can You See What I See?: The Night Before Christmas: Picture Puzzles to Search and Solve (Hardcover)

I bought this book for my kids ages six and seven. Good mix of tough to find and easy to find. If you are thinking of giving this as a gift I think it would be good for ages five and up.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars See for Yourself!, January 2, 2007

By 

J. Nowicki "The Boss and Mrs. B." (Bay City, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Can You See What I See?: The Night Before Christmas: Picture Puzzles to Search and Solve (Hardcover)

Can You See What I See? The Night Before Christmas, using The Night Before Christmas theme, is a seek and find it book similar to the 'I Spy Christmas: A Book of Picture Riddles' book. We bought one each for our granchildren so they could more easily and peacefully look for things together rather than trying to jockey the book to get the best viewing angle for themselves. This is another great low key way to spend some time together. It's a fun Christmas seek and find book. We like it and they enjoy it! I think I see a winner! ~ Mrs. B.