A closer look is written and illustrated by Mary McCarthy. Her goal throughout this book is to create pages for children to use their imagination. The setting starts zoomed in on a lady bug, and continue till the full picture is exposed. The main character of the book is a lady bug that enables the reader to use their imaginations to see what the next pages will bring. The conflict is deciphering what the next page brings. To a certain extent I would say that the mood of this book is suspense. The pages capture the reader by making them curious of what the picture is.

A closer look is a picture book, with little words. I would recommend this book to pre-school or kindergarteners. It is a fun book to entertain the children and allow them to interact with the classroom. The illustrations are important and the main reason the book was created. From looking through the cover I would have never imagined what the book was about. Although after reading the book I understand the title.

This book is a fun way of first learning to read. It has few words so the children can understand and grasp the words. The pictures are simple and made of paper collages that were handmade by Mary herself. I would recommend this book because few books these days ask for the reader's imagination, although it's not the best for learning about literature. This book is all about being open and letting your mind run wild. The children will enjoy using their imagination and it will make learning fun. I enjoyed the book even as an adult and the pictures still stumped me. Therefore if you’re just looking for a fun book that focuses on imagination, that the children will enjoy then look no further.