Snippets: A Gathering of Poems, Pictures, and Possibilities--

The necessity for a marriage of good art with good text in a picture book is clearly illustrated in this oddly packaged assortment from the venerable Zolotow. Recycled ``snippets'' from earlier works are presented in this low-key volume as complete poems. For example, a brief section from Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present, retitled ``The Wish,'' is illustrated by a beribboned box displaying the sky, lake and stars the little girl in the story wishes to give her mother. The text from Do You Know What I'll Do? is transformed into four separate poems--``At Night,'' ``Clouds,'' ``A Promise'' and ``Wind.'' Zolotow's carefully constructed picture books suffer from being taken out of context; they need the support of the original artwork. While Sweet's watercolors are gently winsome, none is an adequate substitute for the varied illustrations of the complete books and, unfortunately, too many ``poems'' seem oddly disconnected or unfinished--like patches of fabric that defy being sewn into a new quilt. Ages 4-8. (Feb.)