Ok, I've kept at it and it's starting to grow on me as I get more familiar. It was just a bit of a learning curve without much in-game instruction.
One request, if you're taking them, would be to display the name of the building/material (rocks?) you're currently "highlighting". That would help with remembering what each object is, without having to memorize the shapes of everything.
I'll be playing this for foreseeable future. Looking forward to being able to unlock what's next!