"There are a lot of animals hidden in this book," the author starts out provocatively.  "See if you can find them.  But watch out! You may be fooled.  These animals can hide in some very surprising ways.

After this irresistible invitation to take part in an animal hunt comes the first "hidden animal." Here is a handsome picture of some leaves and branches—or so it seems.  But something is hidden among them.  What can it be? Turn the page, and there in a most surprising illustration the secret is revealed! In this case, it is an insect; but keep turning the pages and you will find, among other fascinating creatures, the zebra with its shadowy stripes, the ptarmigan that changes color from season to season, the sponge crab that—see them for yourself.

It is a lot of fun to look for the animals in the pictures and to figure out how they hide so well, but this book is more than a game.  Scientifically sound, written in simple, easy language, it also gives the eager youngster some dynamic new ideas about the relationship between living creatures and their surroundings.  

Millicent E. Selsam is the author of Egg and Chick, another popular and unusual science book for boys and girls.  David Shapiro, the artist, is a painter who also teaches at Smith College.

From the dust jacket