Madison Finds a Line

Charming visuals buoy up an erratic rhyming narrative starring a spirited girl. With her trendy name, fetching wardrobe and sophisticated musical tastes (she can croon the ""Basin Street Blues"" and dance the salsa), young Madison is a stylish heroine. She also shows her plucky stuff as she ""sets herself on a mission"" to find out where a mysterious line in her backyard leads. Stepping through a curtain of bed sheets with her cat Caspar in tow, she pursues the line through its various incarnations (rope, zig-zag, steps, slope). It's an adventure that requires her to battle storms on the high seas, scale a mountain and even walk a tightrope: ""Oh... that's all right,"" Madison says when confronted with a line ""flying straight across/ a mile-high slice of air!"" Her determination remains indefatigable: ""I've walked a rope before./ Though this one might be harder,/ since it isn't on the floor."" Warner's (The Magic Sewing Machine) verse scans unevenly and often uses words in confusing contexts (e.g., ""At this terrible moment,/ awash in the foment,/ their umbrella obligingly bobbed into sight""). But her artwork, featuring Madison in an array of costumes against inviting backdrops, aptly captures the imagination of both a child and artist in flight. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)