Albert's Field Trip

In his third appearance (following Albert's Alphabet and Albert's Play ), the quietly industrious goose Albert leads a menagerie of third graders on a field trip to an apple farm. The events are narrated in the prose of a young skunk named Gary, reporting on the trip for the school paper. Albert teaches them a special bus song about `` `the codling worm with the wiggle and the squirm.' . . . But the singing wasn't the best part,'' writes Gary, in a refrain that carries through apple picking, watching apples being processed into juice, then eating apple pies. Once again, Tryon's crisp watercolor and pencil drawings, composed in a variety of perspectives, make each scene one of discovery and remarkable depth. The pace, however, stumbles with a few double-page spreads that precede the text, compelling the reader to flip back to the illustration after reading its corresponding description. When the tired youngsters return to school at night, they're brought home and tucked into bed, and that, according to Gary, ``was the best part.'' Whether the reader will feel such empathy or find the conclusion anticlimactic is open to debate. Certainly, Tryon captures the field trip experience in a gentle, low-key tone with striking visuals. Ages 5-8. (Sept.)