What's What? A Guessing Game

by Mary Serfozo

What's cold and wet, warm and dry, and hard and soft? Why a puppy, of course! Keiko Narahashi's appealing watercolor paintings make this fun concept book a special one for children and adults to enjoy together.

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Storytime

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1996

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED the illustrations in this book!

[Mari Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very simple read, it asks a series of questions like, "What is light?" and "What is dark?" I liked reading it to my toddlers at the daycare, because it uses inference and brings in prior knowledge. They enjoy guessing and being included in the reading process. The illustrations were very soft and include double-page spreads. At the end it reveals something that fits all of the questions asked in the book showing that it can have opposites.

[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like the though here but the actual return doesn't give you much. This asks questions, "what's cold" for example and then gives a sentence such as "Ice cream is cold, as the sea spray that blows, Wave foam chasing your toes." That just doesn't sound good and they're all like that. With a few added or changed words I think this could have easily been a four star book.
The illustrations are okay, nothing special. The one thing I do like is that the pictures can be related to by all children, not just white children. That's the only redeeming factor as far as I can see.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it more than the children I read it to did - they did not care for the fact that the guessing part is somewhat not so much fun and we've all been ruined by the hilarity of Miller's books. However, I am enormously fond of the calmness of the art and think this would make a lovely one on one book or a stumble upon browsing book (display it and see what happens).

[Mimi Lala · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 stars...

I like the idea behind this book. It presents the idea of opposites in a way that is easier for the little ones to visualize. I did find it a bit difficult to use during a story time. It didn't really rhyme and the illustrations were a bit dull.

This book may be more appropriate for preschool and school aged children.

[Ginta · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute book that asks children to think about/state things that are hard, soft, etc. I read the book with my students and they enjoyed pointing out various items in the classroom that answered the descriptor questions. Also the book had a good ending.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for an interactive storytime.

[Budy Yhan]

good book

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

Illustrations and rhyming text provide examples of what is soft and hard, warm and cold, wet and dry, long and short, and light and dark and describe how a puppy is all these things at once.

[LeiAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The entire time my kids and I just thought it was going to be about us guessing multiple things but the end is what made us say oooooohhh lol. Overall it was a good book.