cover image Cathy's Cake

Cathy's Cake

Debbie MacKinnon. Dial Books, $4.95 (8pp) ISBN 978-0-8037-1904-0

There is a lost object in each volume of the photo-illustrated Surprise, Surprise! lift-the-flap board book series, and it's up to the reader to help in the search. Populated by a racially balanced group of photogenic toddlers, the books are based on an easily grasped premise: the title character is missing the title object and, in the process of looking for it, discovers other, related items. Directed by the text (""Is Kitty under the pillow?""), the reader lifts flaps within each photo illustration for an answer to the question (""No, but Kitty's ball is,"" reads the text beneath the flap). Finally, toddler and object are reunited on the last page. Sharp and brightly photographed, this cheery volume will appeal to most every toddler's natural fascination with his or her peers. Ages 1-5. (Feb.)