Dog Tales

Five dogs, ``tall, middling and small,'' interact with the children who love them in a tale that fairly bustles with high spirits. Cheerful headers run across each spread (``Paws and Jaws''; ``Playing''); below, rhyming text accompanies cartoon vignettes (``Here are the dogs,/ scrabbling around.../ digging big holes,/ scratching at fleas,/ gnawing old bones,/ snapping at bees''). Related canine capers are depicted in smaller pictures alongside the headers; ancillary events receive captions unrelated to the rhyming text (e.g., next to the picture of the dog snapping at the bee are the phrases ``Snap! Snap! Ow-ooch!''). If the spread titles serve to illuminate the essence of Dog, the dogs' individual personalities emerge clearly in the varied scenes, as does the generally amicable atmosphere in their multi-species household. Altogether, a happy bumptious romp. Ages 3-7. (Mar.)