Where's Walrus?

"The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books"February 2011

In this wordless picture book, an adventurous walrus slips out of the zoo as the keeper naps, and the enterprising marine mammal leads his would-be captor on a merry chase through the city. After successfully hiding himself amid group after group of people, he finally tips his hand--flipper?--by winning a diving contest; the thoughtful keeper then creates a happier home (and a zoo showpiece) for the walrus by providing him with his own diving board and regulation pool. The visual gag of the walrus's blending into various lineups merely by adding an accessory (a plume on his head means the zookeeper can't find him amid the Rockettes, a hard hat is sufficient to disguise him in a line of bricklayers, and it's the removal of his diver's bathing cap that finally outs him to his pursuer) is an amusing one, cleverly conveyed, and while there's not much plot beyond that, it's still a giggle-worthy and creatively interpreted conceit. The trim illustrations are digitally created, with the smooth regularity and crisp clarity common to that medium, but there's a generous helping of Little Golden Book retro style that gives a period flavor to the escapade. The palette, carefully limited in each spread, sports muted shades of aqua and navy in addition to its predominant gray, but the creamy white of the matte pages ensures that the spreads stay bright and sunny. The shapes balance sturdy rectangles with the rounder shapes of people and Walrus, with Walrus' odd-critter-out status visually emphasized by the droll Fisher-Price sameness of the humans among whom he's attempting to secrete himself. The read-it-yourself wordlessness, visual humor, and sheer absurdity of a walrus' urban adventures will surely appeal to youngsters with a taste for the incongruously silly.