Bam, Bam, Bam

Vibrantly told and boldly illustrated, this story of urban construction is a perfect marriage of text and art. The late Merriam's straightforward, muscular verse (""SLAM, SLAM, SLAM,/ goes the steel wrecking-ball,/ BAM, BAM, BAM,/ against a stone wall'') recounts a process engrossing to most children. Yaccarino, effectively repeating the same graphic style and brilliant tones he employed in Big Brother Mike, here exchanges that big-headed protagonist for burly, large-bodied workers. The book's design, too, contributes to the forceful presentation: text, formatted in white lettering on black or black on white, appears in horizontal strips at the bottom or top of each spread. POW! Ages 4-7. (Mar.)