Cool Concepts

A batch of new titles presents early-learning concepts in a fun format. Little Boy Blue, a purple cow ("I never saw a purple cow/ I hope I never see one...") and Hector Protector ("dressed all in green") star in The Real Mother Goose Classic Color Rhymes (save for that one Vachel Lindsay paraphrase about a violet bovine) with Blanche Fisher Wright's nostalgic illustrations—and a unique 5"×9½" format with a black-and-white checkerboard cover that make the board book stand out. Similarly, The Real Mother Goose Classic Counting Rhymes presents eight favorites, including "One Two Buckle My Shoe" and "Three Little Kittens." In the full-size square volume The Real Mother Goose Classic Sing-Along Rhymes, illus. by Josie Yee, 39 liftable flaps surprise young readers ("Can you find where [Mary's] little lamb is hiding?"). (Scholastic, Colors and Counting $5.99 each 8p ages 1-4 ISBN 0-439-39536-4; -39535-6; Sing-Along, $9.99 10p -33809-3; Sept.)

Fans of Marcus Pfister's Rainbow Fish will welcome Rainbow Fish A,B,C, in which the fellow invites youngsters to his underwater school: "Come for a swim in the deep blue sea,/ and learn the alphabet with me!" Throughout, large alphabet letters float across otherwise wordless spreads, in order, until youngsters reach Z: "Now you've learned your ABCs./ You're as clever as can be." Rainbow Fish 1,2,3 encourages more interaction, as the hero asks children to count his different colored scales ("How many yellow scales does Rainbow Fish have?") and various sea creatures on each page. (North-South, $9.95 each 20p ages 1-4 ISBN 0-7358-1714-6; -1716-2; Sept.)

The animals aboard Jane Yolen's Animal Train, illus. by Doug Cushman, teach colors, shapes, numbers and opposites. Die-cut like a locomotive, the board book's playful verse encourages youngsters to look beneath liftable flaps ("Porter Seal soon/ Comes and goes,/ Luggage balanced/ On his nose") as the characters ride the rails. (S&S/Little Simon, $8.99 12p ages 3-6 ISBN 0-689-84838-2; Sept.)

A yellow canine stars in a quartet of colorful hand-size board books by Jeannette Rowe: YoYo's Animal Friends; YoYo's Colors; YoYo's Numbers; and YoYo's Toys. In each title, a rainbow-colored page features one letter, number, color, etc., and an accompanying illustration that magnifies the concept ("one YoYo,/ two frogs"). (Tiger Tales, $3.95 each 10p ages 2-5 ISBN 1-58925-681-6; -682-4; -683-2; -684-0; Sept.)

English and Spanish translations of familiar words appear side-by-side in four bilingual board books by Rebecca Emberley—My Animals/Mis Animales; My Clothes/Mi Ropa; My Food/Mi Comida; and My Toys/Mis Juguetes—all illustrated with colorful fabric collage against a stark white background. Each object or concept gets its own page, but clever pairings (e.g., "car/el auto" featuring a red car and "truck/el camión" depicting a blue and yellow truck) make the most of each spread. (Little, Brown, $5.95 each 10p ages 2-4 ISBN 0-316-17343-6; -17454-8; -17718-0; -17494-7; Sept.)

Penguins ABC and Penguins 1 2 3, both by Kevin Schafer, show the birds in their formal best at swim and play, in crisp, clear photographs. In the first, images line up alphabetically ("A is for Antarctica/ B is for Baby," showing two adorable fuzzy newborns). The second enumerates in verse ("One little penguin/ alone in the snow./ Somehow it always knows/ which way to go"). (NorthWord [800-328-0590], ISBN 1-55971-831-5; -830-7; Sept.)

The urban scene unfolds in City Signs by Zoran Milich, through 30 artistic photographs—a police car, school bus and construction site among them—all framed by wide white borders. The only text appears on the vehicles and signs. Carefully choreographed spreads teach themes or concepts, whether featuring a red car under an "enter" sign and another at an "exit" or a spread of pizza and ice cream vendors. (Kids Can, $15.95 32p ages 2-5 ISBN 1-55337-003-1; Sept.)

Ba and George enjoy the fall harvest in Ten Red Apples: A Bartholomew Bear Counting Book by Virginia Miller. The fruit ripens with each turn of the page, until red apples outnumber green; a panel on the left side of each spread (the numeral and the running count—"five red apples"—organizes apples for easy inventory. A sweet surprise greets readers in the end. (Candlewick, $13.99 32p ages 2-4 ISBN 0-7636-1901-9; Sept.)

Colorful, labeled illustrations teach vocabulary and concepts in Jack and Annie's Story Word Book by Rebecca Elgar. The action alternates between the animal friends as they get dressed, eat breakfast and head to nursery school; engaging text invites participation ("Now let's play dress-up. Is there a hat for everyone?"). Suggested games extend the reading experience. A pull-out poster spotlights the alphabet, numbers and colors. (Kingfisher, $12.95 40p ages 2-5 ISBN 0-7534-5560-9; Sept.)

For older readers, the myth of Cadmus (reputed to have brought the alphabet to Greece) is reimagined in There's a Monster in the Alphabet by James Rumford. The author explains what each letter stood for ("A was once a picture of an ox"; N, the monster's serpentine curves), and weaves the history into a story. Glorious illustrations call to mind the images of a Grecian urn, set against a backdrop of fiery orange, black and purple watercolors. (Houghton, $16 40p ages 5-9 ISBN 0-618-22140-9; Sept.)