Amazon.com (ISBN 043919900X, Hardcover)

After mastering the many I Spy books and then moving on to conquer the tougher-riddled I Spy Gold Challenger, kids begged Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick for an even greater challenge. Naturally, this creative team rose to the occasion, creating the ultimate: Extreme Challenger! Open to any page and find a mind-boggling array of things: "a lobster, a pig, a guitar, / Two skulls, a button, a spring, a car." Wick's exceptional photographic skill renders every object crystal clear, whether on a blank white background or against a backdrop of dusty old bookshelves with antique toys, keys, clocks, and tools. Marzollo's rhymes are straightforward yet clever, matching "an ace" with "a missing bottle's space," and "puffball shoes" with "sad blue ooze." Children will have so much fun "I spying," they won't even realize they're developing their visual discrimination ability, as well as their reading and vocabulary skills! Extra credit riddles at the end of the big, colorful book provide an additional test of readers' nimbleness, and the authors also encourage children to write their own rhyming picture riddles based on the illustrations in the book. Okay, all you eagle-eyes out there, have at it! (Ages 3 to 8) --Emilie Coulter