A: Day with Josephine and Her Friends: Inspired by the Art of Honor C. Appleton

Tracing the engaging if rather mannered lifestyle of a turn-of-the-century British child, Prince resurrects the literary character Josephine, once popular in the U.S. and England. Accompanied by a playmate, Josephine leads an eager entourage of dolls and stuffed toys on a daylong adventure filled with simply crafted yet intricately imaginative games. In her effusive introduction, Prince explains that she spruced up the ``somewhat dated and overly sentimental'' original text to make this youngster more accessible to a new generation of readers. Appleton's lively, sunny watercolors, reproduced in their original form, brim with mischief and humor as bright-eyed dolls follow an intent Josephine's every move. Old-fashioned page borders and supplemental line drawings scattered throughout the text add to the book's slightly formal atmosphere. This homage to an easier age of childhood may evoke nostalgia in some for the days before high-tech toys. All ages. (June)