I Spy Gold Challenger: A Book of Picture Riddles [Hardcover]

Jean Marzollo (Author), Walter Wick (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up | Series: I Spy

With 24 million copies sold, the bestselling I Spy series is being relaunched with new designs and foil covers.

This bestselling book features a collection of favorite I Spy riddles that send readers searching 12 photographs for hidden objects.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"I spy a heart, a starfish, a frog, / A towel, a trowel, a taxi, a dog; / Seven horses, a barrel, a duck that is teeny, / Two real feathers, and a surfer's bikini." Now, all you have to do is find these objects in Walter Wick's masterful, crystal-clear, boldly colorful photographic landscapes. I Spy Gold Challenger! collects author Jean Marzollo and Wick's 12 favorite photographs from previous I Spy books, and invents a new series of ways to make children scratch their heads. A fantasy castle with a sand dragon and a medieval battle in progress; a complex city intersection made from wooden blocks and assorted toys; an attic stuffed with junk--each page seems more complex than the last. The seeming simplicity of the task at hand, and the surprising difficulty in finding all the items mentioned in the accompanying rhymes, remains a winning combination. (Click to see a sample spread. Text copyright ©1998 by Jean Marzollo. "Patterns and Paints" from I Spy School Days copyright ©1995 by Walter Wick. Permission from Scholastic Inc., Cartwheel Books.) (Ages 3 to 7)

From Booklist

Gr. 2^-5. The immensely popular I Spy series presents photographed setups of carefully arranged objects with riddles underneath each picture that encourage children to find particular objects in the photo. This series entry includes photographs that the author and photographer decided were their favorites from previous books, and substitutes more difficult riddles for the original ones, challenging children who like a truly vigorous search. As in earlier books, a list of riddles at the end gives young seekers the opportunity to work backwards and find the picture that matches the riddle. With the added level of difficulty, this is not just a retread of old material but an enjoyable puzzle for determined eyes and brains. Susan Dove Lempke

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Cartwheel (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590042963
• ISBN-13: 978-0590042963
• Product Dimensions: 12.4 x 9.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #49,307 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best trip companion for a little kid, November 8, 2001

By 

Emilia Palaveeva "ema-in-seattle" (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Spy Gold Challenger: A Book of Picture Riddles (Hardcover)

This book is as exciting for kids as it is for parents. I bought our first I Spy book for a long (17 hrs) plane flight with my 3.5 year old and it really did the job of entertaining him enough. Without it the trip could have been a nightmare. I recommend it to anyone who needs to keep a child entertained and occupied for a longer period of time.

Each page is a picture if multiple little objects. Under the picture there are several riddles, and kids can spend quite a lot of time looking for the objects. But parents can make addititional riddles--so many objects are hidden or not obvious. And they can have fun too.

The artwork is beautiful and sharp. While older kids can learn to be more observant, younger ones can enhance their vocabulary by learning the name of the objects (with an adult's help , of course).

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific book, challenging for all ages, July 26, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: I Spy Gold Challenger: A Book of Picture Riddles (Hardcover)

We have a 2-1/2 yr old daughter who absolutely LOVES the "I Spy" book series. This book is much more involved and difficult than the smaller board books designed for little ones. However, she got the idea of searching for things from the easier board books and soon got bored (pardon the pun). Using this larger version, we can make up lots of games to keep it interesting. Now, she asks us "I spy a ___" and we have to find it. Hard to do with only a few pictures on each page.

We have a lot of fun with it too - and haven't found some of the things after several months! Bottom line: Great book - start with the board books for younger ones and move up to this. make up your own games to challenge them. Enjoy

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tons of fun, November 4, 2006

By 

P. Wright (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: I Spy Gold Challenger: A Book of Picture Riddles (Hardcover)

My grandson and I spend hours on these I Spy books. What I love is that even if we finish finding everything in the book (which we haven't on this particular book in the I Spy series), a couple months later, we have just as much fun doing it all over again!