Pots and Pans

A seemingly unprepossessing subject yields surprising rewards in this attractive picture book. Two moppets tour the kitchen cupboards, pointing out such items as a cast-iron frying pan, a butter warmer, a Bundt pan, Tupperware containers, etc. The text, frugally pared, names each object and makes occasional direct overtures to the reader (``How many wooden spoons are in our kitchen cupboard?''). Lizzy Rockwell's bright watercolors capture an impressive variety of textures, from the gleaming metal of a tea kettle to the interior of a well-seasoned wok, the enamel of a casserole to the wire mesh of a strainer. Recognizing the interests of their audience, the mother-and-daughter team eschew the conventional uses of kitchen paraphernalia; instead, a final spread presents the children, hatted in colander and strainer, making music with wire whisk, wooden spoons, bowl and casserole. Thoroughly appetizing. Ages 3-6. (Mar.)