Reviews

ea. vol: illus. by author. unpaged. Random. Mar. 1986. BD $2.95. PreS Oxenbury's latest board books suit toddlers who have grown beyond word recognition board books into concepts of the senses and gross motor skills. These four books look as simple, yet expressive, as her infant series of Family, Friends, etc. (all Little Simon, 1981). I Can covers motor skills like running, sliding, jumping, kicking, with one verb illustrated on each page. In the other three books, one page shows an object and names it; the facing page shows the nearly bald toddler interacting with it. Clean white backgrounds keep the focus on the baby. The sounds in I Hear are close to a young child's world: rain, grandfather's watch, a barking dog, a crying baby. I See has the young one seeing an airplane, reaching for a butterfly, gazing at a daffodil, peering at the moon. Textures are explored in I Touch . The joyful, expressive toddler pats a cat, enjoys a water tap shower, picks up an earthworm and cuddles his blanket. An excellent set. Jacqueline Elsner, South Portland Library, Maine