Ding Dong! and Other Sounds: And Other Sounds

Noisy toddler playtime is chronicled in these three board books about sounds. Each page showcases a child with a toy and a bold onomatopoetic word identifying the sound each might make: the tambourine in the marching band ``rattles,'' a plastic vacuum cleaner emits a resounding ``vroom'' and a stuffed frog crouches beneath the word ``ribbet.'' The final spread in each book features the entire cast and a word depicting the group's noise--e.g., the marching band's ``ta-ra-ra-boom-dee-ay!'' The photographs' vivid, solid-color backgrounds produce a staged effect that somewhat overpower the subjects. The sonorous text begs to be more efficiently illustrated with photographs of realistic objects rather than the scaled-down reproductions used here. In the end, this collection lacks oomph. Ages 1-4. (Aug.)