Right Number Elephants

There are millions, billions and trillions of counting books; is there room for another? For this one, absolutely. Sheppard counts down from 10 elephants to one in an inventive takeoff on the jokes that ask ``How many whomevers does it take to do whatever?'' First the reader is asked how many elephants it takes to pull a train out of a tunnel and save everyone on board; turn the page and 10 elephants charge into the countryside, squirting water and carrying train cars on their backs. It takes five elephants to ``impress the neighbors with a quick circus'' and three for ``a fast game of cards.'' The text is quick, clever and unpredictable. Bond's illustrations are wild and fast-moving, and the format offers so much variety that readers will stay on their toes. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)