What's Cooking?

The host of his own show on the Food Network, chef Emeril Lagasse gets kids into the kitchen with recipes such as "Grill-It-Up-a-Notch Ham and Cheese Sandwich" (a dash of dijon and honey, plus a slice of gruyère, make all the difference), "Baby Bam Burgers" (he beefs up the meat with onions, garlic, etc.) and "Oh-Yeah-Baby Glazed Carrots" included in Emeril's There's a Chef in My Soup!: Recipes for the Kid in Everyone, illus. by Charles Yuen. The oversize volume contains 75 recipes with clear instructions and illustrations built around Emeril's humorous headshots; easy-to-read icons designate cooking considerations, including difficulty levels (almost all require some adult supervision). (HarperCollins, $22.99 256p all ages ISBN 0-688-17706-9; Apr.)

For Little Learners

Youngsters learn to tell time with a favorite mouse in Maisy's First Clock by Lucy Cousins. "8 0'clock/ Good morning, Maisy!" This oversize board book chronicles the major moments in Maisy's day; a clock with movable hands and colorful gears peeks out of die-cut circles, and children can place the hands to match the picture on the opposite page. (Candlewick, $12.99 16p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-7636-1788-1; Apr.)

The Kingfisher Number Box contains the paperback First Number Book by Jeni Riley, illus. by Mandy Stanley, and three sheets of punch-out red, blue and yellow foam numbers and mathematical symbols. (Kingfisher, $12.95 48p ages 3-up ISBN 0-7534-5539-0; Apr.)

Encore Performances

Favorite characters return for more fun and games. Her persistent requests for a dog denied, Madlenka takes matters into her own hands (and gets more than she bargained for) in Madlenka's Dog by Peter Sís. As Madlenka strolls her city block with her imaginary dog on a leash, lift-up flaps and die-cut windows reveal her neighbors' own dream dogs. (FSG/Foster, $17 40p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-374-34699-2; Apr.)

Starring in his third volume, the titular guinea pig turns health-care practitioner—and storytime savior—in Little Whistle's Medicine by Cynthia Rylant, illus. by Tim Bowers. Little Whistle, happily anticipating Soldier's nightly ritual of a bedtime story for the Toytown babies, springs into action when he finds that Soldier is not well. (Harcourt, $15 32p ages 3-7 ISBN 0-15-201086-6; Mar.)

Everything is just ducky when Auntie Lily brings Daisy Duck and her baby brother, Pip, to the feeding pond. "Now we can make as much noise as we like." Yet when a feathered crowd descends, and they attempt to reunite with Mama Duck, the duo's cries are drowned out in Quack, Daisy, QUACK! by Jane Simmons. (Little, Brown, $13.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-316-79587-9; Mar.)

The hero of Louie's Goose and his mother have a special summer pastime: "He would run away and she would catch him." But the game takes on serious overtones when Louie feels left out of Grandma and Grandpa's after-dinner conversation and disappears into the tall beach grass in Gotcha, Louie! by H.M. Ehrlich, illus. by Emily Bolam. (Houghton/Lorraine, $15 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-618-19549-1; Mar.).

The trouble begins with a leaky roof in the sequel to Duck in a Truck, Fix-It Duck by Jez Alborough, and follows the, er, handy quacker on a series of missteps. (HarperCollins, $15.95 40p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-06-000699-4; Apr.)

The stars of Blossom and Boo: A Story About Best Friends return in Blossom and Boo Stay Up Late: A Story About Bedtime by Dawn Apperley. Here, the bunny-and-bear pair wonders what happens in the forest after dark, but after encountering strange shadows and weird noises, the duo determines that daytime is best for playing. (Little, Brown/Tingley, $14.95 32p ages 3-5 ISBN 0-316-05312-0; Apr.)

Mole is the first to accept when Beaver invites his friends for a ride on his newly fashioned watercraft. Then, the rest of the gang from Bear's Eggs and Beaver's Lodge—Hedgehog and Hare, Badger and Bear—climb aboard. It's Butterfly's soft touch that finally topples the craft in There's Always Room for One More by Ingrid and Dieter Schubert. (Front Street, $15.95 32p ages 2-6 ISBN 1-886910-77-4; Apr.)

In Barney Saltzberg's Hip, Hip, Hooray Day!: A Hip & Hop Story, the follow-up to The Problem with Pumpkins: A Hip & Hop Story, the titular hippo hopes for a birthday trip to the roller rink. So when his bunny best friend presents unfun surprises—like a promise to sort Hip's socks and "a coupon for tooth polish and floss"—the birthday boy gets mad. (Harcourt/Gulliver, $15 40p ages 5-8 ISBN 0-15-202495-6; Apr.)

Armchair adventure once again turns all too real in Edward in the Jungle by David McPhail, featuring the star of Edward and the Pirates. While Edward reads about Tarzan and plays with a set of jungle animals in his backyard, the boy's hero suddenly swoops him up when an "enormous crocodile" threatens. A tropical palette creates a veil of mystery. (Little, Brown, $15.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-316-56391-9; Apr.)

Old Badger awakens his little one with a special surprise in Little Badger's Just- About Birthday by Eve Bunting, illus. by LeUyen Pham, the third in the series starring the furry duo. (Harcourt, $15 32p ages 3-7 ISBN 0-15-202609-6; Apr.)

Having visited Venice (Gaspard on Vacation) and New York City's Museum of Natural History (Gaspard and Lisa at the Museum), the black pup dreams of becoming a champion windsurfer in Gaspard at the Seashore by Anne Gutman, illus. by Georg Hallensleben. But first he must learn how to swim. (Knopf, $9.95 32p ages 5-8 ISBN 0-375-81118-4; Apr.)

Mary Ann Hoberman and Nadine Bernard Westcott team up for another rousing rendition of a popular children's chant, Bill Grogan's Goat. "Bill Grogan's Goat/ Was feeling fine/ Ate three red shirts/ Right off the line." Westcott's watercolor-and-ink illustrations show the fashion hungry farm animal hopping a freight train and offering the shirts to his barnyard brethren. (Little, Brown/Tingley, $14.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-316-36232-8; Apr.)

In the newest addition to David Kirk's Biddle Books series, Little Bunny, Biddle Bunny, rhyming couplets tell the story of the littlest rabbit on an adventure away from home. The hand-size volume shows off Kirk's signature oil paintings on laminated pages. (Scholastic, $9.95 32p ages 2-up ISBN 0-439-33819-0; Feb.)

The sequel to Stripe, Stripe's Naughty Sister by Joanne Partis, follows the duty-bound feline brother as he chases his wayward sibling. When the duo gets stuck in a tree, Stripe saves the day and wins his sister's affection. Partis's bright purples, pinks and deep green artwork have a 60's style. (Lerner/Carolrhoda, $15.95 32p ages 3-8 ISBN 0-87614-466-0; Mar.)

The fiery redheaded star of Stella, Star of the Sea and Stella, Queen of the Snow, returns to lead her little brother Sam on an adventurous romp through the woods in Stella, Fairy of the Forest by Marie-Louise Gay. Turns out, he's not as timid as he seems. (Groundwood, $15.95 32p ages 2-5 ISBN 0-88899-448-6; Mar.)

As in the original That's Good! That's Bad!, set in the jungle, relief and anxiety by turns overtake the characters in That's Good! That's Bad! in the Grand Canyon by Margery Cuyler, illus. by David Catrow. Beset by a series of comical mishaps, the boy is finally reunited with his grandmother; Catrow's outrageous pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations add slapstick humor. (Holt, $16.95 32p ages 4-7 ISBN 0-8050-5975-X; Apr.)

When she learns her new neighbor is deaf, Amelia sets to learning sign language in Amelia Lends a Hand by Marissa Moss. Rendered in the series' familiar journal format, the book also contains eight pages of perforated sign language cards. (American Girl, $14.95 32p ages 8-up ISBN 1-58485-539-8; $7.95 paper; -508-8; Mar.)