Faces

The authors of this crisply produced book of photographs aim to inspire young artists by asserting that art can be made from such everyday objects as wire, wool, brushes, scrap paper, cooking utensils, and discarded paper. Humans are wired to see a face in almost any configuration of two dots and a line, and Miller and Goodman's serviceable verse riffs through the possibilities. "Look around you%E2%80%93faces everywhere," they point out, showing a photo of the side of a mournful-looking canvas bag punctuated by two eyelets and a horizontal zipper. Envelopes, string, small toys, pieces of felt, and more are pressed into service as faces, climaxing with an elaborate, bound-in, lift-the-flap feature that shows a clown whose expression rotates through a spectrum of emotions depending on small changes in eyes and mouth. It's a book of motion, color, and ideas that, above all, encourages readers to notice life's details and to take creative chances: "Sort through your toy box and take things apart./ Mistakes and surprises are all part of art." Ages 7%E2%80%93up. (Mar.)