Daddy and I--

The creators of Nathaniel Talking and Night on Neighborhood Street here introduce a series of board books featuring black children that describe everyday activities familiar to all kids. The first three books are written in simple, if occasionally strained, rhyming verse and concern a boy and girl who play with a doll; a girl and her parents who make music together; and a boy and his dad doing household chores. The fourth--and strongest--story, told by a boy who enjoys playing with two friends is written in pithy sentences that beginning readers will easily master. The volumes' themes of the rewards of working and playing together are reinforced by Gilchrist's cheerful if repetitious illustrations, which focus on each tale's characters but contain little background detail. Ages 2-6. (Oct.)