Sendak Is Back

Now in its second season, HarperCollins's reissue of 22 Sendak classics continues. This time, his collaborations with Ruth Krauss take center stage. In Charlotte and the White Horse, first published in 1955, creamy pages frame Sendak's softly lit illustrations of a girl who convinces her father to keep a wobbly legged horse and cares for him until he can stand on his own. Sendak's delicate watercolors suit the dream-like mood of a boy who accomplishes all that he sets out to do in his imaginary world, in I Want to Paint My Bathroom Blue (1956), also by Krauss. A boy's imagination also comes to the fore in A Very Special House (1953) by Krauss, as the artist depicts the hero creating a home filled with a turtle, a giant, a very old lion and "some monkeys and some skunkeys." Oversize pages brim with the creatures as well as his house's "very special" furnishings. Open House for Butterflies (1960) takes a similar format to these collaborators' classic A Hole Is to Dig, and lastly, Hector Protector and As I Went Over the Water: Two Nursery Rhymes (1965) by Sendak conveys as much plot through the artist's wordless spreads as with the minimal text. For collectors and budding readers alike. (HarperCollins, Charlotte $12.95 32p all ages ISBN 0-06-028640-7; I Want to Paint $14.95 24p -028634-2; Very Special House$14.95 32p -028638-5; Open House $12.95 48p -028636-9; Hector $14.95 56p -028642-3; Nov.)

Art Attack

Antony Mason contributes two titles to the Art Around the World series. In the Time of Renoir focuses on the impressionist era, taking a closer look at the artist's contemporaries including Degas, Cézanne, van Gogh and Gauguin. Highlighted sidebars look at movements that developed outside of Europe while full-color reproductions feature artwork of the period. Back matter includes a "Chronology of the Impressionist Era," "A Brief History of Art," glossary and index. In the Time of Michelangelo focuses on the Renaissance. (Millbrook/Copper Beech, $8.95 each paper 48p ages 9-12 ISBN 0-7613-2285-X; -2284-1; Nov.)

Ruth Thomson's Museum of Art: Masterpieces kit contains everything kids need to inspire a career as a curator or independent art collector. The sturdy carrying case holds an informative book—with recommendations for viewing works of art and hands-on activities, a timeline of masterpieces from 1200-1900 as well as reusable stickers and a guide for designing your own gallery. A brush, paint and cotton cloth for restoring a mini—Mona Lisa and a finished copy framed in gold complete the package. Aspiring entomologists can recreate an insect exhibit in the Museum of Natural History: Insects by Steve Parker. (Running Press, $19.95 each 64p ages 8-up ISBN 0-7624-1067-1; -1068-X; Nov.)

With a clear, accessible format, the Smart About Art series kicks off with Edgar Degas: Paintings that Dance by Maryann Cocca-Leffler; Claude Monet: Sunshine and Waterlilies by True Kelley; and Vincent van Gogh: Sunflowers and Swirly Stars by Joan Holub. Each presents factual information about each artist in the style of a school report, interjecting the narrative with the voice of a child writer. In Degas, for instance, "author" Kristin pastes in a photograph of herself in fourth position (aping one of Degas's sketches of a ballet dancer); in Monet, the narrator compares two paintings of the same scene, one by Renoir and one by Monet. Full-color photos and reproductions of the paintings illustrate the text. (Grosset, $5.99 each paper 32p ages 5-9 ISBN 0-448-42520-3; -42522-X; -42521-1; Oct.)

Encore Novel Performances

In the fourth book in the series that began with Little Wolf's Book of Badness, Little Wolf, Forest Detective by Ian Whybrow, the hero and his friends join forces, creating The Yelloweyes Forest Detective Agency (YFDA). The sleuths must prove their worth when an elusive suspect prompts Little Wolf's father to hire a "professional" detective, Furlock Holmes-Wolf. (Lerner/ Carolrhoda, $12.95 112p ages 8-12 ISBN 1-57505-413-2; Sept.)

It's the Hatfords versus the Malloys (again) in Newbery-winner Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's The Boys Return. This time it's spring break and the Hatford boys team up with the Benson brothers to plan a ruthless prank against the sisters, schemers in their own right. (Delacorte, $15.95 144p ages 9-12 ISBN 0-385-32737-4; Sept.)

Emily Rodda's Rowan and the Travelers follows up on the magic begun in Rowan of Rin. Now, Rowan struggles to understand the mysterious sleeping sickness that takes over the town with the arrival of a nomadic tribe called the Travelers. (HarperCollins/Greenwillow, $14.95 160p ages 7-up ISBN 0-06-029775-1; Oct.)

The irrepressible Owen is back in Stephanie Greene's Owen Foote, Super Spy, illus. by Martha Weston. In this sequel to Owen Foote, Soccer Star, Owen's investigative pursuits are pushed to the limit when he sets his sights on Principal Mahoney. (Clarion, $14 96p ages 6-8 ISBN 0-618-11752-0; Oct.)

Best buddies Doris and Amir return in Joyce Hansen's One True Friend. In this follow-up to The Gift-Giver and Yellow Bird and Me, much of the novel unwinds through letters revealing the solid connection between the two lonely friends now living in different cities that are worlds apart. (Clarion, $14 160p ages 10-14 ISBN 0-395-84983-7; Oct.)

In a sequel to PeeWee's Tale, Lexi's Tale by Johanna Hurwitz, illus. by Patience Brewster, follows Lexi the squirrel and PeeWee the guinea pig as they pair up to help a homeless man in New York City's Central Park. (North-South/SeaStar, $14.95 112p ages 7-10 ISBN 1-58717-091-4; Oct.)

Continuing the Wind on the Fire Trilogy, which began with The Wind Singer, William Nicholson follows heroes Kestrel and Bowman when they become separated in Slaves of the Mastery. A psychic connection binds the twins and eventually draws them back together as they fight the evil powers that have taken over their homeland. (Hyperion, $17.99 434p ages 10-14 ISBN 0-7868-0570-6; Sept.)

Returning Characters

In Lucy Cousins's latest incarnation, Maisy's Farm: A Pop-Up and Play Set, each spread presents a different scene in which to place the countrified character. A "mini-book" is tucked inside the hayloft, Maisy and tractor reside in the shed and 26 sturdy paper play pieces keep Maisy company. (Candlewick, $16.99 8p ages 4-6 ISBN 0-7636-1294-4; Oct.)

Two recent releases by author Stella Blackstone reprise familiar characters. In Cleo and Caspar, the titular cat must learn to share the house with new puppy Caspar. As in past efforts (Cleo the Cat and Come Here, Cleo!), Blackstone's spare text plays off illustrator Caroline Mockford's burnished acrylic renderings outlined in thick black brushstrokes. Readers tour the hero's abode in Bear at Home, also by Blackstone, illus. by Debbie Harter. On the cover, Bear greets youngsters from his open door. "This is bear's house,/ and this is the key./ Open the door,/ and what do you see?" Crisp watercolor, pen-and-ink and crayon illustrations depict bear sweeping the kitchen, lounging in the living room and sudsing up in the bathroom. (Barefoot, $14.99 each 24p ages 4-7 ISBN 1-84148-440-7; -436-9; Oct.)

Farmer George, the sweet-tempered rustic hero of two previous Nick Ward tales, is back for two new adventures that underscore the fellow's devotion to his nonhuman charges. In Farmer George and the New Piglet, George brings home an anxiety-ridden piglet and, in trying to ease it into the farm's porcine community, ends up sleeping in the sty. In Farmer George and the Snowstorm, the fellow and his stalwart horse Sidney rescue a lamb stuck in a snowdrift. (Pavilion [Trafalgar, dist.], $13.95 each 32p ages 3-5 ISBN 1-86205-521-1; -516-5; Jan.)

Adapted from a chapter in Rip-Roaring Russell, Russell's Secret by Joanna Hurwitz, illus. by Heather Maione, features the four-year-old asking if he can take the day off from nursery school like his little sister Elisa. When his mom obliges, Russell soon learns it's more fun being a baby when you actually are a baby. (HarperCollins, $14.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 0-688-17574-0; Nov.)

John Bemelmens Marciano takes his grandfather Ludwig's heroine to new territory with Madeline Says Merci: The-Always-Be-Polite Book. With the help of Ms. Clavel, the girls and Pepito Madeline demonstrate impeccable manners as she teaches the basics of "please and thank you," "kindness and consideration," greetings and farewells. Though the verse is somewhat stilted, the message is clear. (Viking, $11.99 48p all ages ISBN 0-670-03505-X; Oct.)