Can You Imagine-- ?: A Counting Book

A counting companion to Have You Seen . . . ? (Gardner's imaginative alphabet book), this begins with ""1 whale wearing a veil?'' then proceeds to ``2 ducks driving trucks?'' ``3 giraffes taking photographs?'' and on through ``12 swans twirling batons?'' He recaps the counting lesson on the back page, with all the animals appearing in white silhouette as part of a pyramid. Each pairing is set upon a glistening surface, in bold, often overbright colors and abstract shapes. This is interesting but lacks the punch of its predecessor. Here there are only 12 items, not 26, without the patent absurdity that made the earlier book laugh-out-loud funny. Ages 2-6. (October)