I Spy Fun House: A Book of Picture Riddles

I Spy

by Walter Wick (Photographer), Jean Marzollo

Search-and-find riddles paired with amazing photographs will captivate kids of all ages in the bestselling I Spy series.

Acclaimed I Spy creators Walter Wick and Jean Marzollo use everyday objects to enhance intellectual discovery. From balloons to stuffed animals to clown dolls, readers can examine the different objects, solve the picture riddles, and become an I Spy detective! A perfect fit for STEAM curriculum.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Nonfiction, Art, Photography, Puzzles

33 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1993

About the author

Walter Wick is an American artist and photographer best known for the elaborate images in two series of picture book activities for young children, I Spy and Can You See What I See?, both published by Scholastic.

Reviews

[Douglas Summers-Stay]

A classic of horror. The clowns are freaky enough, but the hypnotized man without eyes and that warped screaming cat, along with the king of masks ought to be criminal to expose to small children. Everything is lit from below to make them look extra frightening. I haven't yet mentioned the warped shadows, the mirror people, or the spiders. What the heck were these people thinking.

[Melissa]

Clowns. There are clowns EVERYWHERE.

And not just fun cartoony clowns. No. Black eyes. Like a doll's eyes. When they come at ya, they doesn't seem to be living... until he bites ya, and those black eyes roll over white and then... ah then you hear that terrible high-pitched screamin.

Also, spiders. IF THE PAGE DOESN'T INCLUDE NIGHTMARE CLOWNS FROM LOVECRAFT LAND, IT'S FULL OF SPIDERS.

[RaspberryRoses]

the idea of reviewing an I Spy book is just really funny to me.

anyway, this one wasn't that good. I know how amazing this series can be (or maybe it's just childhood nostalgia...?) but this one did not hit. The difficulty felt really variable - sometimes it was way too easy and sometimes it felt deeply unfair. And the theme wasn't pleasant to look at.

[Natalie.Oudish]

It is nice

[Kayla Zabcia]

it's not entirely fair when they ask you to look for something and 80% of it isn't even on the page. other than that lovely as always! some repeat pictures, but lots of new ones, too.

[J.B. Mathias]

This is my least favourite of the books so far. A lot of the pictures felt repetitive and featured a lot of worn creepy old dolls and puppets. That said I still loved it, it was still a trip and its still fun to find everything.

[Patricia Kaniasty]

Love all these books!!!

[Amara]

If you have even a speck of coulrophobia, do not read this book. There’s one on every page.

[Lauren C]

Challenging enough to be fun for parents while also being accessible to kids. It's super fun task to do together.

[Tessa]

What in the fresh clown hell is this?? I Spy, are you ok? Should be called I Spy: Feverish Psychidelic Nightmare.

[Craig]

Incredible.

[Kathyj]

used to read these all the time w my dad

[slattman]

Goat

[Susan]

I normally love these books but I found this one too hard (?)

[Julia McNeill]

I love I Spy, but this one relies too heavily on clowns. They’re unsettling! Definitely some fun spreads though, as always.

[Hillary Nicholson]

Contains lots of clown pictures

[Linda Dong]

Just as amazed by the cleverness, world-building and immense craftsmanship of these books as an adult as I was as a kid.

[Sarah Sammis]

Sean has been a fan of the I Spy books since he was two. Many of the books have been turned into computer games. We've played is I Spy Fun House, I Spy Spooky House and I Spy Mystery. After having won the I Spy Fun House game about a dozen times we found a copy of the book to add to our I Spy library.

I Spy Fun House the book has to be hardest and most disturbing to read of the series. The photographs consist of lots and lots of creepy looking clown toys, bright and clashing colors and mirrors. After a dozen or so attempts at the book there are still some pages where we haven't found everything.

We haven't played any of the other computer games in the I Spy series so I don't know how the I Spy Fun House game vs book compares to other computer adaptations. I can say though for I Spy Fun House the video game is a much more satisfying experience than the book. The animations for finding an object are entertaining, there's more to explore and the carnival world feels less surreal than it does in the book.

[Josiah]

I have seen several of these books on which Jean Marzollo and photographer Walter Wick are joined together as a team, but perhaps this one takes the cake.
A few of the scenes appear as if they could hide almost nothing at all, but these such pictures usually turn out to be the most difficult ones. The imaginative mind of Walter Wick ostensibly knows no limit, and the I Spy books are a wonderful forum for his creative endeavors. This is one of those books that would be ideal for taking on a long car trip, to engage one's mind and alleviate potential boredom in the long hours.
"I Spy: Fun House" is a very good book. Two and a half stars all the way.

[Anna Hardesty]

I loved these books whenever I was in Elementary school.
It kept me busy and made me use my noggin.

So if you're trying to work and your kids on getting on your nerves, plop them on the couch with one of these. =D

[Samantha]

A collection of seek and find puzzles for school-agers with rhyming text and bonus challenges.

This title is themed around the circus/carnival. The fun house mirrors make this title especially challenging and of course, fun!

[Jo]

Fun!

[Crazy Uncle Ryan]

OK, so am I the only one who had a hard time finding that match on pp. 22-23? That took me forever.

[Umm Layth]

The clowns were a bit creepy, honestly!

[Amy]

There is a creepy clown doll on almost every page. This book could have been better.

One thing my son did like was some of the pages you could turn upside down and see more pictures.

[Tricia]

Bit challenging for preschoolers...may be more appealing for younger elementary. typical i spy title with fun house theme.

[Rachel]

I love I Spy books, but this one just helped in intensify my coulrophobia.

[Theresa]

children love checking these out to search for pictures, its funny how many said they practiced their reading stills reading the words.

[Hajar_Abdullah]

i still have that book. I was a BIG fan I SPY books.
they are still fun for me :D

[Jessie]

I Spy is a very funy way to get kids interested in books.