What’s in the Egg?
Maike Biederstädt
Prestel Publishing

Taking readers to a variety of locations – the branches of a tree, the South Pole, a sandy beach, a coral reef, a tropical riverbank and finally, a milkweed plant, a paragraph of text explores the titular question.

Thus, we see life emerging into view as in turn, a hungry blackbird chick breaks out of its shell; baby penguins emerge from their eggs; tiny newly hatched turtles start their journey from eggshell to sea as dusk falls; a male clownfish keeps watch over babies in their transparent eggs; using her gaping mouth, a mother crocodile carries her newborn baby crocodiles to the river

and on the last spread the entire life-cycle of a monarch butterfly is shown.

The elaborate paper-engineering that Maike Biederstädt uses to make her boldy hued, detailed scenes explode into life is amazing.

Youngsters will learn some interesting facts about each of the animals and their habitats as they enjoy the superb visuals. For instance they’ll be fascinated to discover that a father penguin carries an egg on his feet and uses his feathers to keep it warm.

More superb paper-engineering is the essence of these two books also from Prestel that I missed when they were first published:

Funny Birds / In the Butterfly Garden
Philippe Ug

Philippe’s incredible cut-out illustrations carry most of the story as we follow, in the first title, a group of exotic ‘funny birds’ and the hatching of their new babies. High up in a tree, a nest holds eggs safely hidden from view until the fledglings are ready to emerge and explore their external environment on that first day.
Using rich colours Ug has created eight awesomely intricate 3D scenes of birds of various shapes and sizes

for us to feast our eyes upon.

In the Butterfly Garden little ones can follow the story of a caterpillar’s metamorphosis into chrysalis from whence emerges a beautiful butterfly.

There are other tiny insects hiding in the garden’s foliage too, including ladybirds, ants, a dragonfly; there’s even a praying mantis just poised ready to snatch a snack. Then as day gives way to night, it’s time for the moth to take to the wing.

Again in Ug’s eight scenes there’s considerable attention to detail and a rich colour palette.