Animal Nursery Rhymes

Handsomely photographed images, cleanly silhouetted in that inimitable Dorling Kindersley style, vivify 50-plus well-chosen nursery rhymes. Bo-Peep, for example, is represented by a bonneted lass shown first gazing into the distance, crook in hand, then in pretty repose, dreaming of her lost sheep; an ewe and a lamb stand in for her wayward flock. Other child models in ermine-trimmed capes and crowns pose as the king and queen memorialized in ``Sing a Song of Sixpence,'' while less famous rhymes celebrate snail, bat, wren or Mrs. Hen, two little dicky birds or two little dogs. Amusing juxtapositions enhance other poems: ``This Little Pig'' pairs a child's dangling toes with five piglets sized to match the child's feet. Bordered in narrow colored bands, the spreads rely on ruled squares and rectangles to contain up to a dozen poems, each with a number of photographs and decorative insets--the effect is both festive and orderly, in the same way that the combination of real objects and fanciful verse proves entirely complementary. Ages 2-5. (Nov.)